End of Eternity
by The Chairman's Wing
Summary: The Victor and her Bride return to Ohtori as new Duelists and old are bound to the rose seal and Akio makes his final bid for eternity.
1. Prologue: Men of Grim Purpose

**Part One: **

**And the Gates of Night Open Once More**

**Prologue: Men of Grim Purpose**

The young man's cane tapped against the white hospital floor as he slowly made his way in the direction of Dr. Lang's office. Walking was still difficult, and Mikado was having trouble getting used to his new cane. He wasn't going to complain, however. It was a far better than the hated wheelchair, which had held him prisoner for months before the new medicines had finally been able to restore his ailing body. He had come very close to death. Mikado had been lucky. His older brother, however, had not been. He had pushed himself too hard in his final days.

A few of the nurses greeted him as he passed by. He nodded at them but did not speak. He knew he often appeared** to people who didn't know him as arrogant and cold for not trying to make friends, maybe even more so today with weightier things on his mind than idle chitchat.  Nevertheless the hospital had acted as his home, and the few staff members who knew him had become a surrogate family. His father had abandoned the family when his mother had become pregnant a second time. He had hardly seen his mother since he had checked into the hospital four years ago. His brother had often beenweakened from the treatments, and they had only spoken on occasion. After four years inside the hospital, he would be leaving this sterile white coffin and entering the real world once more. It was a sobering thought.**

Reaching the doctor's office, he knocked on the door politely, then entered. Dr. Lang looked up at Mikado as the young man sat down. Dr. Lang's normally cheerful round face was inscrutable today. Mikado braced himself for the news.

Dr. Lang stroked his beard, something Mikado had learned that he did when troubled, and said, "The test scores have come in."

Mikado nodded gravely. "And?"  
                

"They were extremely high. You've been admitted to the university."

Mikado leaned back in the chair and, closing his eyes, let out a deep sigh.  The knot of tension in his chest slowly loosened. He did not know whether to be relieved or frightened.  If he had failed the tests, he would have resumed a normal life as best he could, but now Mikado had been given an opportunity to discover whatever his brother thought had been worth driving himself to his death for by leaving.

After a minute, he opened his eyes and looked calmly at Dr. Lang, running a hand through his messy blue hair self-consciously. "Sorry about that. I just…"

"I know," the doctor said quietly. "Are you certain you wish to commit yourself to this course of action? Further treatments could…"

"We've discussed this before, doctor. This is as healthy as I'm going to be for the foreseeable future. I know what it is I need to do."

Lang shook his head sadly. "You're as stubborn as your brother."

"I really don't want to be here another moment longer than I have to. It's been four years."

Lang sighed and rose, picking up the large black bag that sat next to his chair. "I still wish I could persuade you to do otherwise."

Dr. Lang handed the bag to Mikado, who opened it and peeked inside. Sure enough, there was his brother's sword, his white uniform, his diary, the small card with the strange rose seal on it, and the ring. Mikado reached in and drew the black ring with the rose design out of the bag and looked at it. He still wondered what had happened to cause it to turn black - before his brother had died, the ring had been white and the design had been red, but the red luster had mysteriously faded more since that dark day. He gently closed his hand around the ring and lifted the bag onto his shoulder.

"I'm going to be leaving, now," Mikado said softly. "Doctor… thanks for everything. And thanks for trying to save my brother. You've done a lot for us."

The doctor nodded. "I thought you'd leave right away. I took the liberty of calling for a cab."

Mikado nodded. "I guess this is goodbye."

The elderly doctor reached out and grasped Mikado's hand and shook it. "Goodbye, Mikado. I don't know what it is you're planning, but I wish you the best of luck in it."

Mikado scrubbed at his eyes as he left the room and tried to force down the lump in his throat. This was not the time to be getting emotional. He walked slowly down the familiar, sterile white corridors, saying goodbye to the few nurses he was on friendly terms with. He paused as he passed by room 533A, where he had stayed for these long, lonely four years. Already the room had been cleaned and all the little traces of his presence were gone. The room was ready to receive its next occupant. Mikado determinedly turned his gaze aside and continued his slow trip to the exit. He stopped in front of the main doors to the hospital, which slid open at his approach.

"This is it… no turning back now. I wonder if I'll see Juri when I get to the university?"

With a deep breath, Mikado Tsuchiya slipped on Ruka's black ring and stepped outside into the sunlight.

________________________________

Bright sunlight shined through the window of room 013 at the Phoenix Insane Asylum. Most people would have found it difficult to read in the intense glare, but the inmate of 013 merely adjusted the purple-tinted glasses he wore and continued reading the heavy book he held.

"Ah, it's a beautiful day out professor.  Time to come out of that stuffy room!" a voice called from outside.  The tone was cheerful, save for a slight twist on the word "professor." There was the sound of a key turning in the heavy metal lock, and the speaker came into the room shortly after. He was a tall, heavily built man with a thick black beardwho resembled something between Santa Claus and a football player. He wore a white outfit that gave a very sterile and artificial feel to his appearance, marred only by a small nametag proclaiming him a "Doctor Shimura". ****

"You know, that's getting to be an irritating habit," Professor Nemuro said without looking up from his reading. He wore a similarly colored outfit that, despite a day's wear, appeared even more sterile than Shimura's. 

"But, Professor," Shimura replied, "it's bad for your health if you stay in that room all the time, and we need to get you on the road to recovery so you can stop taking up space here."

"I wasn't referring to your duties. I was referring to your constant mockery of the word 'Professor,' 'Doctor'." Nemuro replied, putting an identical twist on the other man's title.

Shimura's smile faded. "Alright then, Nemuro, come out of that room and let's get going," he said in an unfriendly tone. Nemuro shrugged and tossed his book on the bed and moved towards the door. Two men even built larger than the doctor fell in to either side of him as he passed out into the hall.

"Large escort today, I see," Nemuro noted as they began traveling down the hall. Shimura flinched but didn't respond. "You know," Nemuro continued, "there really isn't any reason for this so long as you don't try alternative medicine again. I had quite a peaceful record here for all but the first few months of the three and a half years I've been here before your arrival." Shimura remained silent, but he flinched even more violently and glanced almost reflexively at entrance to the electro-shock therapy room which still had several people in official-looking uniforms bustling in and out of it, despite the fact the incident was almost three days old. Nemuro smiled somewhat grimly. The Black Rose Society hadn't been a part of his life for almost four years now, but Mikage's shadowy presence still seemed to be.  It was something he wasn't sure if he should be grateful for or upset about. Regardless, the specter of the black rose society chairman had proven quite useful in… encouraging the medical enthusiasts here to leave him alone. They still didn't know why one of the nurses had collapsed in an apparent anemic attack, or where the surgical razor had come from. Their fear had kept him in isolation for three days now, though, and Nemuro was relatively certain that Shimura would not travel down the same road of treatment again.

"Well, here we are, Professor," Shimura said as they neared a heavy iron door, his tone once again** cheerful and mocking. Nemuro sighed, but finally shrugged. Shimura was a small man; permitting him this one victory might make him more controllable in the future. There was the sound of another key grating in a lock, and Nemuro was ushered through the door into what was almost a park. It would have been, in fact, had one omitted the surrounding wall. Nemuro walked down the steps without any urging, the daily trips long since become a part of his routine. The heavy door clanged shut and locked behind him, but he paid it little mind. He began picking his way across the dewy grass toward a large table that stood inside a small veranda on the far end. As he neared it, a tall tree nearby grabbed his attention.  Nemuro paused, listening for the telltale rustle of leaves. His wait did not go on long.**

"HEAVEN, EARTH, AND THE SEVEN MOONS OF MERCURY MAY FORGIVE YOU FOR YOUR ABSENCE, BUT I WILL NOT!" came a high-pitched voice above him. "SAILOR EARTH FLAMING GAIA FAIRY KICK OF JUSTICE!" Nemuro sighed and sidestepped easily. A small, wizened old man in an outfit like everyone else's in the asylum sped by Nemuro, spouting increasingly unintelligible battle cries. He glanced at his target with a brief look of consternation that might have been longer had the ground not put an end to his assault. Up on the veranda, a man who had been unseen up until now hit a miniature gong.

"Mr. Yoshimura," Nemuro greeted calmly, hoisting the little man up. "I wish I could say I missed this. You're unhurt, I trust?"

The man began struggling immediately. "Foul villain of the nether worlds, I shall give you a taste of the light with my mighty fist! HA!" Nemuro glanced unconcerned at the fist in his side, and then tossed the little man away. He gauged the throw carefully so as not to hurt the smaller man too much, but Yoshimura still hit the ground with a resounding thud. Nemuro sighed, but decided not to go after him this time. After all, "foul villain of the nether world" had cut a bit close. He climbed the stairs up to the veranda and seated himself on the bench as Yoshimura struggled with a bush. A chessboard sat on the table in front of him, the seat across from him empty. The man with the gong came to fill it after only a few moments.

"Ah, Professor, it's been a while," the man said. He moved a white pawn on his side of the board.

"Mister… excuse me, Lord Sun Tzu, it has indeed been a while," Nemuro replied calmly to the man sitting across from him as he moved a black pawn. "Lord Sun Tzu" smiled happily at the acknowledgment of his title, a not uncommon expression on his otherwise nondescript face.

"I hear you had some trouble with the shogun's people," Sun Tzu replied.

"Yes, they decided that torturing a prisoner of war might prove useful," Nemuro replied, unconsciously slipping into Tzu's reality in an attempt to describe the reason for his absence. He related the story as well as he was able to the deranged man across from him

"Well, at least you gave them a good thrashing," Tzu laughed. They were on the last legs of their second game by now. Tzu had won the first one, but this was closing decidedly in Nemuro's favor. Yoshimura crouched on the roof above them like a small rodent, and a few other inmates in the park sat nearby, watching the match that had been almost a daily occurrence for three years now. "I don't quite understand how you managed it all, though. I wouldn't think they would have left one of their flaying knives so close to you. They're usually more careful about it, considering we're all great strategic minds or heroes.

"OF JUSTICE!" Yoshimura specified almost reflexively from above.

"Yes, yes, of course Mr. Yoshimura," he added, trying to placate the older man. "So, anyway," he said, his attention turning back to Nemuro, "how did you manage it?" He moved a piece on the board and Nemuro's eyes glittered briefly. The tactic was almost worthy of the military genius of the real Tzu. But perhaps…

"I… don't think that would be an appropriate topic, Lord Sun Tzu," a young female voice broke in.

"Ah, Miss Sayuri," Tzu greeted the attractive blond. Several of the other inmates echoed him. Nemuro kept his eyes on the game.  "I'm not doing anything bad here. Just trying to get an edge on our enemies. Nemuro might have some news from the front that could even eclipse some of your intelligence reports."

"Umm, I think the information might have been compromised," Sayuri replied, shifting her nurse's clipboard nervously. "Shogun Shimura has most likely prepared some counter strategies by now."

"None can extinguish the burning flame of JUSTICE!" Yoshimura yelled from overhead. "We shall fight him with peace, love, and our burning fists of homicidal fury! He shall fall before us like grass before a lawnmower, his organs spilling out upon the floor like fish guts on a fisherman's hands, like…"

"Quiet, Yoshimura," Tzu broke in, "the time for action has not yet come. You were saying, Sayuri?"

"Well…that was about all," Sayuri said with an uncertain glance at Yoshimura. "I…just think we should hold off on any action for the moment." There was an uncomfortable note to her voice, and she avoided looking at Nemuro.

"You know," Nemuro said after a while without looking up, "sometimes holding off on things can be dangerous. Things are rather like this chess set. You just need a proper tactic for every scenario.

"Oh…really, Professor?" Sayuri asked nervously. There was hint of apprehension on the word 'professor,' but unlike when Shimura said it, also a note of respect.

"Quite. For example," Nemuro began, moving a bishop, "Tzu's queen there is at first quite dependable-looking. However, his game depends a bit too much on it. A simple move can easily counter everything, since the queen is quite fragile and indeed, undependable, when you really think about it." Tzu grimaced in consternation and moved his queen slightly. Nemuro removed it from the board the following turn, his rook making a resounding thud on the board as it took the white piece's place. "Would you mind holding this?" Nemuro asked, giving the white piece to an increasingly flustered Sayuri.

"Continuing on with the game, you'll note that Tzu's king is now threatened by not only my rook, but also my bishop," Nemuro said, sliding the bishop he had menaced the queen with earlier over a space. "Quite a bad situation he's in now." Tzu moved in desperation but Nemuro countered it almost casually with a knight. The professor locked eyes with the nurse across the table and the almost casually toppled the king. "Game over. It's a pity, really. He might have won if his queen wasn't such a hollow promise." Sayuri stared at him with a slightly sick expression on her face, and Nemuro plucked the piece from her suddenly nerveless hands. "In fact," he continued, not missing a beat, "if he'd had only a pawn by his king, he might have won." Nemuro casually slid one of his pieces over by the fallen king to demonstrate, righting the slain monarch in the same motion. Sayuri was backing away slowly by now. "What's the problem," Nemuro asked. "Don't you like chess?"

"You…" she finally said after a long silence. "Come with me, now!" Nemuro shrugged and followed Sayuri as she almost ran towards the exit.

Yoshimura, Tzu, and the other inmates watched the retreating figures casually. "It appears today's game is done," Tzu said calmly.

"Yes…  Yes it does," Yoshimura replied.

"Well then, shall we go, everyone?" Tzu asked the crowd. The others nodded and began to disperse across the grounds. The chessboard remained as it was with the black pawn by the nearly checkmated king.

*              *                 *

"How dare you!" Sayuri finally burst out when she and Nemuro had reached the hall. "How…how could you treat me like that! After all I've tried to do for you."

"I was merely making a point," Nemuro replied calmly. "For someone who's apparently 'tried' to be of help to me all these years, you proved highly ineffective a few days ago. And may I remind you I still remain here despite the fact that I am completely sane?"

Sayuri slapped him sharply. Nemuro's glassed were almost knocked from his face, but he caught them deftly just in time.

"I'm just a nurse here, what did you expect from me?" Sayuri replied in agitation. "I've talked to them numerous times on your behalf, and they've never listened. I'm sorry about what Shimura tried, but there was no way for me to stop him."

"I'm starting to…disbelieve you," Nemuro replied. "You remind me somewhat of another woman I once knew. Outwardly dependable, but in the end only useless… and a traitor besides."

"Traitor? Traitor!" Sayuri almost screamed at him. "You killed a person in there, and what you did to me I…I don't know. Except I certainly don't have anemia!"

Nemuro shrugged.  His face bore its usual neutral expression.

Sayuri threw her clipboard against a wall. "Well, you know what, if you don't want me to help you anymore, then I won't. I'll go find some of the orderlies to take you back to your room so you can sit there until hell freezes over." She turned away and retreated quickly.

"Goodbye," Nemuro said quietly, "Tokiko." He seated himself at a bench, waiting for the orderlies. Sayuri was a failure. But he had not been idle in his time here. 

*              *                 *

"Well, that's the last of it," a worker said to his companion as he loaded the last of Nemuro's belongings onto a cart to take them from solitary to his normal room.****

The other man laughed shortly. "Well, at least this guy doesn't have much stuff to haul around."

"Yeah, just a few books," the first man replied. "Look at these, we've got some history, science, a few bits of odd literature… he certainly has a wide range of interests."

"Yeah," the other man said, holding out another book. "He even seems to be interested in gardening, of all things."  He rummaged around and came up with a book concerning planting flower gardens.  A quick glance through the book showed there was a large section devoted to roses.

"What a nut," he laughed.


	2. Chapter 1: A New Hand is Dealt

**Chapter 1: A New Hand is Dealt**

Kouu looked around in wonderment at the campus of Ohtori.  Its size was incredible, its architecture fanciful.  Delicate-looking arches and white pillars dominated much of the architecture, and the place in general reminded him of pictures he'd seen of French chateaus, at least as far as outward appearances were concerned.  

He adjusted his spectacles, and ran a hand through his straight blonde hair.  Kouu was taller than the average Japanese male, with a slim build.  He looked all around, letting his soft brown eyes take in the entirety of the campus from his vantage point just inside the gates.  ****

A maze.  That was the best way to describe the campus, Kouu thought.  Its labyrinthine, marbled hallways and colonnades, seeming to glow white in the late morning light, wound almost at random.  Only when one really stopped to think about it did any order in the place become apparent.  In the center of the university stood the Tower, the place where all the high-level administration took place.  Surrounding it was the group of buildings where lower administration was located.  This included guidance counselors and faculty heads.  Sprawling out even further was the campus proper, a huge complex of lecture halls, dormitories and classroom buildings****

Of course, he saw all this from the perspective of one who was quite lost.  Left to his own devices within the vast campus, he wandered.  It was all well and good to know that there was a way through the maze, but not actually knowing the way made knowing of its existence pointless.  If only he could find the guidance counselor's office somewhere in this sea of incoming freshmen and transfer students...

The blonde sighed.  All he really wanted for the moment was a dorm room and the accompanying key.  He'd spent a long plane ride from his last trip to America to return to Japan, and then a lengthy boat ride to the island.  His clothes, khakis and a loose white button-down shirt, were rumpled.  He needed a shower, and he needed a shave.  More than anything, he needed sleep.  His head felt as if it was stuffed with cotton.  Worst of all, people were too much in a hurry to stop and help.****

Somewhere up ahead, Kouu began to hear a voice above the crowd.  

"Look out!  ...sorry!  Hey, outta the way!"  This voice, clearly a girl's by its sound, was easily the loudest.  It grew louder as she ran towards him down the hall.  The others were just mutters, barely audible.  Most of them seemed to be sounds of admonishment.

"Hey, watch where you're going!" a student yelled.

"...sorry!" she called back without stopping.

Then the body connected to the voice came into view.  Her dark auburn hair was tied in a ponytail--_a topknot, really_, Kouu thought.  This was all that was visible for the time being.  To his eyes, it was like watching the fin of a shark coming closer, closer...

For a moment, it seemed as if she would be like the countless others and pass him by, but then she changed the angle of her run suddenly and headed straight at him.  Packed as the hallway was, Kouu had nowhere to go without shoving someone aside.  He tried to sidestep as the hallway sprinter broke through the knot of people directly in front of him, but there was no room.  

She crashed into him.  His partial sidestep meant he missed most of the impact, and was only put slightly off-balance.  The girl, however, began a nosedive into the floor.  Her books fell out of her arms and were scattered across the floor.  

Moving with surprising speed, Kouu reached out and grasped her wrist as she fell away from him.  She nearly dragged him down on top of her before Kouu gained control.  There was a moment of precarious balance, and then Kouu slowly righted himself.  He pulled the girl upright a second later.  

"Are you okay?" he asked, smiling faintly.  The girl looked up at him.  At six-foot-one, he was taller than her.  Not by as much as he would have expected, though.  She was tall for a girl, and she walked with a confidence in her stride that seemed to add to her height.  Or at least, she _ran with confidence in her stride.  Her hazel eyes delved into his brown for a moment, and then she bent down to pick up the books she'd dropped.  Kouu crouched down to help her.  It had long been a habit of his to help people who needed it, especially women, and even more so with good-looking women.  _

She perfectly fit the description.****

"I'm really sorry about that," she said to him.  "It's just that I'm going to be late for class in a couple minutes, and I barely have any idea where it is..."

"I understand," Kouu said.  "I'm lost here, myself." ****

He handed her books over and they stood.  As she turned away to head on down the hall, the blonde tapped her on the shoulder.  

"Excuse me," he said.  "I don't want to hold you up any more, but could you point me toward the guidance counselors' office?"

"Sure," she said.  "But you may want to get your glasses checked."

"Oh?"

The redhead girl pointed to a doorway about ten feet behind Kouu and to his left.  There above the door was a sign that read "Guidance Office."  Kouu sighed.  He turned back to thank the girl, but she was already gone.  He caught a brief glance of her topknot bobbing up and down as she dashed through the hall, and then she passed out of sight.  

As the blonde headed to the office, something on the ground caught his eye.  He edged his way through the crowd until he could see it, close to the wall.  It was a textbook, probably one of the ones the running girl had dropped earlier.  He picked it up, and looked at the cover.

"Introduction to Advanced English," the cover read.  Kouu spent a moment silently sympathizing with the girl he'd run into.  English was a tough language, full of contradictions and backward-seeming rules, not to mention an inconsistent phonetical system.  He'd had an edge by learning the language in America, where speaking it was a necessity for daily living.  

He wondered how he would return the book to its owner when it suddenly occurred to him to open the front cover.  He did, and saw writing on the inside.

_Property of Akemi Kawabe.  If found, please return to East Dorm, room 301._

"Well," he murmured, "it looks like I have an appointment this afternoon, then."  With that, he tucked the book under his arm and entered the guidance office.

________________________________

Akemi left her English class in a rush, thankful to be out of the classroom at last.  It had seemed as if class would stretch on forever, especially since she was somehow missing her English book.  She wondered if she'd have to buy another one.  She sighed, remembering that the book she'd bought was one of the last used editions the library had.  Chances were very good that if she didn't get her original book back, she'd have to buy a brand-new one.  She'd already almost exhausted her budget.  The last thing she needed was another expense.  Hopefully someone found her book, maybe even the young man from the morning collision.   He'd looked nice enough, whoever he was, and would probablyreturn it to her.   She went over her budget mentally, calculating how much money she'd have until her next check from home if she had to buy a new textbook.  The total wasn't exactly an uplifting sum.  She supposed she'd just have to get by.  

She was wandering the halls at a more sedate pace now, having no classes for two hours or so.  It gave her a nice, leisurely lunch period.  Lunch, she thought, was the next best thing to being released from the final class of the day.  

As she walked to the cafe, she noticed a girl with long silver hair and dark blue eyes standing off to the side of the hallway, holding a piece of paper in her hand.  Every so often, she passed a scrutinizing gaze across the paper, and then took in her surroundings.  She would look bewildered for a moment, and then go back to the paper.  

"Um, excuse me," Akemi said, walking up to the girl.  "You seem kind of lost."

"Well, yes," said the silver-haired girl with a faint, sheepish smile.  Her voice was soft, but strong enough that Akemi could hear her over the noises of the hallway.  "I suppose I must be.  I found my dorm just fine, but now I can't seem to make heads or tails of this thing."  She motioned with the hand holding the paper--evidently a map of the campus, Akemi realized.  Every freshman that went to orientation got one, and they could be acquired at the guidance office as well.

"Where are you trying to go?" Akemi asked helpfully.

"I'm trying to find the cafe," the lost girl said.  Akemi's eyes lit up at the response.

"Oh, then you can just come with me," she said, smiling.  "That's where I'm headed, so I'll show you the way."  The silver-haired girl bowed.

"Thank you," she said, straightening.  "By the way, my name is Ran Oshima.  I'm a transferring sophomore."

"I'm Akemi Kawabe," she greeted.  "Sophomore."  The two headed down the hall, chatting amiably.

"So**,** what's your major?" Akemi asked.

"Anthropology," Ran answered.  "I'm particularly interested in ancient religions and cults.  What about you?"

"Psychiatry," Akemi said.  "I want to have my own practice** eventually, but my guidance counselor last year spent most of her time trying to convince me that I'd make a great student counselor somewhere."**

"Really?"  Ran looked surprised.  "The same thing happened to me at my last school.  They kept trying to get me to switch my major to something more conventional."

"Where did you go to school before?" Akemi asked.

"Tokyo University," Ran said.  

Akemi went silent.  Ran's tone had been very matter-of-fact when she spoke of her transfer, but...  Tokyo University was one of the most difficult-to-enter universities in all Japan, certainly one of the highest-ranked schools.  Most people would have been happy just getting in, never mind their major.  Most people wouldn't even think about transferring away.

"Tokyo University?" Akemi echoed.  "Wow..."

"Well, the anthropology program here is better," Ran said.  "I barely made it, actually.  The entrance exams for this university are pretty tough."****

"You're telling me," Akemi nodded.  Her exam scores had been passable, but her kendo scholarship was what made her admittance to the university a sure thing.

"But then, from what I've been told, _everyone who makes it here "just barely" makes it.  I guess the fact that we're here is merit enough on its own."_

"Yeah..."  The redhead wondered what kind of scores Ran had gotten on her entrance exams.  She was half-tempted to ask, but it might seem rude, and she didn't want to offend a potential new friend.  

The two remained silent as they entered the cafe.  Like many of the non-classroom structures at Ohtori, the cafe had a feeling of light openness to it.  The white marble pillars seemed to amplify the light, making everything brighter.  

Part of the cafe featured outdoor seating for nice days like today.  Most of the outdoor tables were already taken, Akemi saw.

"By the way," the Akemi piped up as she scanned the outdoor area for an open table.  "You wouldn't happen to have seen a blonde guy with glasses wandering around anywhere, would you?"

"Blonde with glasses...  Not sure," Ran replied, trying to remember if she'd seen the man Akemi was thinking of.  "Was he very tall?"  Akemi nodded.

"He's about as tall as..."  Her gaze latched onto a tall young man with long red hair walking through the café, and she pointed in his direction.  "He's about as tall as that guy."

The man Akemi pointed to was impossibly good-looking, with features that were fine, but not without strength.  He wore a black uniform, almost military in its appearance, which struck her as odd.  There was no set uniform for Ohtori University.  The only dress code at Ohtori implied that students would wear casual attire and make an active effort to look nice.  Uniforms were reserved for one special set of people.

"I think that's the Student Council President," Ran observed.  "Touga Kiryuu."  

"Yeah, I think you're right," Akemi said, her eyes never leaving him.  "The blonde guy was about as tall as him, but didn't stand out nearly as much."

Akemi began to wonder if perhaps the red-haired man stood out a little _too_ much.  She watched as the eyes of almost every girl in the open-air cafeteria were drawn to him, and she imagined she could hear a collective sigh of adoration.  Sheepishly, she realized she was caught up in the same reaction.****

The president stopped at nearly every table, visiting briefly with its female occupants.  She'd heard rumors about Touga, rumors that pegged him as _the playboy on campus.  Judging by what she saw, the rumors were at least partly true. He'd share a word or two, sometimes a wink and a flirtatious grin, and be off again for another table.  The silver-haired girl realized that he was enjoying himself immensely.  _

She supposed it couldn't be helped.  Boys would be boys, after all.  

Akemi sighed as the man left.

"It should be impossible for a person to be so good-looking," she said.  Ran nodded in agreement.  "Oh well," Akemi said.  "Hey, by the way..."

"Hm?"

"I was wondering," Akemi asked.  "Are you doing anything this evening?"  
  


"Not really," Ran said.  She'd had half a notion to wander around the campus in an attempt to commit at least some of it to memory, but she could easily forego that for a while.  "What did you have in mind?"

"Well, I was just thinking," Akemi said.  "I'm making dinner this evening, and I was wondering if you'd like to join me."

________________________________

Kouu sat on his bed, resisting the urge to fall asleep.  It wasn't that he didn't want to sleep.  He'd just taken a shower a short while ago to freshen up and hopefully make himself a bit more alert after his flight.  Instead, the opposite had happened.  He now felt relaxed and more tired than ever.  However, he told himselfhe needed to leave the comfort of the East Dormitory and get an idea of how the campus was arranged before tomorrow, when he'd have to be in classes.  

The blonde let loose a jaw-cracking yawn as he stood and grabbed the T-shirt he'd left lying on his bed.  He pulled it on as he walked towards the door leading out of his room.  

Dormitory hallways all looked the same to Kouu.  Fluorescent lights overhead illuminated a tiled hallway painted off-white with thick, plain wooden doors placed at even intervals down both sides.  At the end of the hall werean elevator and a flight of stairs that serviced all five floors of the dormitory.

But, like everything at Ohtori, there was an air of the aesthetic.  The elevator had a caged door, and the stairs wound around the shaft and spilled out into the first floor day room.  He walked to the elevator, but saw it was on the fifth floor.  Considering that the blonde was on the second floor, the stairs would be a much faster alternative.  So he descended the stairs, wondering how much of a budget this university must have taken.  Someone, he reflected, had to have a lot of money to do something like this.

Unlike the four floors above it, the ground floor was only half-occupied by dorm rooms.  The other half was a large, open space that included a television, several tables and chairs, a small kitchen area and a battery of vending machines near the door.  Kouu headed to one of the machines to get a drink, and noticed a youth of about his age trying to decide how he wanted to spend his loose change.

Kouu stepped up to the machines and nodded when the young man noticed him.  Giving it no further thought, Kouu dropped his change into the machine and came away with a can of green tea, which he promptly opened and drank deeply from.

"You new around here?" asked the voice of the young man.  Kouu nodded again, turning to regard the person addressing him.

He was a bit shorter than Kouu, but not by much.  He had soft, dark hair and eyes that were a dark brown, almost black.  His face was thin and angular.  

"Today's my first day," Kouu elaborated, when it seemed apparent that this other person wasn't going to reply anytime soon.  

"You just transferred, then?"

"Something like that," Kouu explained with a shrug.  

"Oh?  What do you mean by 'something like that?'"

"I spent a lot of time traveling, so I never stayed at one school long enough to get a very complete permanent record.  When I applied here, they wanted to test me to see where I was.  By their standards, I managed to do well enough to actually earn some credit toward my freshman year.  So I have a light course load this year."  Kouu stopped to take another drink.  "Listen to me, rambling on when I haven't even told you my name...  Kouu Koharu."****

"Taki Suzuka," The black-haired student said.  "I was just wondering why I hadn't seen you before.  I got here about a week before classes officially started, so I've seen most of the people around campus."

"It's a nice place," Kouu said, looking around.  "I kind of wish I'd arrived a day or so early, myself.  At least I wouldn't have missed any orientations."

"Ah, you're not missing much," Taki said, cracking a grin.  "Teachers here don't really do much the first day except hand out the course syllabus and try to get to know the students.  If you've missed anything, I'm sure you'll be able to make it up fairly soon."

"Yeah, I guess so," Kouu said.

"Considering you are here... I don't suppose you're taking kendo, are you?" Taki asked suddenly.  "As your extracurricular activity, I mean."****

"No, afraid not," Kouu said.  "Fencing's my preference."

"Ugh, you're one of _them_."  The look on Taki's face indicated equal parts disappointment and irritation.  "You'd be a waste on the fencing team."

"'_One of them_?'" Kouu asked, faintly amused.

"Sorry, no offense.  Kendo is just better, that's all."  

"Oh, is that so?"  Kouu's tone carried a note of challenge, as well as surprise.  

"Sure," Taki said.  "Tell you what: if you don't believe me, come with me to the kendo practice this afternoon.  You'll see the real value of kendo."

"I don't know..." Kouu mused.  "It's not like I haven't seen kendo before."

"Then you haven't seen what a real kendoist can do with it," Taki said with his most winning smile.  

"If you say so," Kouu said.  "This ought to be interesting, then.  When's practice?"

"Well, actually," Taki said, checking his watch, "it's only in about thirty minutes.  Care to walk there with me?"  

"Sure."

The two headed out the door, arguing the merits of their sports most of the way to the dojo.

*              *                 *

"And so?" Taki asked, as the two walked back to the dorms from the kendo session.  "What did you think?"

"Well, from what I saw," Kouu began, "it looks all right, I guess."

"You _guess?"_

"Well, I mean, I could have fenced against most of the people there, I think."

"You're kidding," Taki said.  He almost sounded offended, Kouu thought.  "You'd take on a kendoist with fencing moves?"

"Well, not head-on, no," Kouu explained.  "Think about it.  Taking a kendo strike straight-on with a fencing foil wouldn't work very well, but I could definitely see myself maneuvering around a lot of the people in the dojo."

"You've lost your mind," Taki concluded.  

"I'm not saying kendo isn't a good form of swordsmanship," Kouu said.  "I think it's about as good as fencing or anything else.  It's no stronger or weaker.  It's just a matter of finding a style you like and getting good enough with it that you can play toward its strengths."

"If you say so."

"I say so," Kouu said, effectively ending the argument.

There was a moment of awkward silence, and Kouu couldn't help but smile.  Despite the somewhat boastful bravado, Kouu thought he could get along rather well with Taki.

"Well, anyway," Taki said, breaking the silence, "what are you doing for dinner?"

"Dinner?"  Kouu thought about it for a minute and looked at his watch.  The time read about 4 p.m.  "Well, it's kind of early for that, don't you think?"

"Well, there's a great place just off-campus, but a lot of the students go there for dinner.  You need to get in a bit early if you don't want to stay for an hour just waiting to get served."

"Point taken," Kouu said, as they entered the dormitory.  "But before we go, I have something I have to do."

"What's that?"

"I found someone's book laying in the hallway," Kouu said.  "I need to get it back to her soon."

"'Her?'"  Taki's voice latched onto the word instantly.  "I'm going with you."

"Can't you just wait here?"

"Are you kidding?  I hate waiting.  It'll make the time go by faster if I'm doing something, so I'm going with you."

"Whatever you want," Kouu sighed.  He went upstairs to his room, grabbed the English book from his desk, and then started up the stairs to the third floor.  He didn't notice Taki had taken the elevator until he stepped off the lift at the third floor.****

"You could've taken the elevator and saved yourself the stairs," Taki said with a grin.

"I got here just as fast as you did," Kouu pointed out.  Taki shrugged, and the two headed down the hall.

"What room is it?" Taki asked.

"301," Kouu replied, quickening his pace to reach the end of the hall opposite the elevator and stairs.  Taki reached the door a half-second before the blonde, but Kouu knocked first.  There was a long pause as the two waited for the door to open, and Kouu wondered if the book's owner was out.  

As soon as he thought about turning to leave, though, the latch turned and the door swung inward.  Through the doorway, Kouu could see a tidy room that looked a bit more spacious than his own, and he thought he saw someone else in the background.  

The auburn-haired girl who poked her head through the doorway looked up at Kouu in recognition.

"Hey, you're the one I bumped into earlier," the girl said.

"Miss Kawabe," Kouu said, holding up her English book, "I believe this belongs to you."

She reached out for the book, looked inside the front cover, and nodded.  

"Yeah, this is mine," she said.  "Thank you for returning it."

"Not a problem," Kouu said.

"I really should do something to thank you, though," Akemi said.  "Hmm...  have either of you eaten dinner yet?"

"No," Taki said quickly, beating Kouu to the response.

"Well, then, come in," Akemi said, opening the door wider and motioning for the two to enter.  "I made dinner for me and a friend, but I have a _lot left over, so help yourself to whatever you want."_

As Kouu stepped in, he saw the friend Akemi mentioned.  She was a girl with silver hair and deep, dark eyes, and there was an air of quiet thoughtfulness and contemplation about her. 

"I should introduce myself," the redhead said, then laughed.  "My name is Akemi Kawabe, in case you hadn't guessed.  I'm a transferring sophomore."

"Taki Suzuka," said Taki.  "Sophomore."

"Ran Oshima," said the silver-haired girl as she finished pouring herself a glass of tea and stood up.  "A sophomore.  Just transferred."

"I'm Kouu Koharu," Kouu said.  "A freshman."

"Nice to meet you," Ran said, pouring two glasses of tea for the newcomers and refilling her own.  "Are you two staying in this building, too?"  

"Not me," Taki said.  Ran shook her head and handed Kouu his glass of tea.

"I'm living in a different dorm complex," Ran said.

"I see."

Meanwhile, Akemi was still thanking Kouu for the return of her book.  "Well, if you live in this building, at least you didn't have to come far to bring me the book," she said.

"Oh, it wasn't a problem," Kouu said.  "Certainly nothing compared to going to the kendo dojo to watch this show-off."  He pointed at Taki when he thought the dark-haired kendoist wasn't looking.

"I am _not_ a show-off," Taki said.  "I'm just good."

"And also modest," Kouu added, earning a laugh from the two girls.

"So you're taking kendo too, Kouu?" Ran inquired. ****

"Actually, no," Kouu clarified.  "Fencing is more my style."

The look on Akemi's face eerily mirrored Taki's.  Kouu rolled his eyes.

"Don't tell me we're going to start in on this again..." he moaned. ****

________________________________

Akio sat in his tower in the center of campus, smiling softly to himself.  As usual, events were falling neatly into place.  That four of his new prospects had already managed to meet and start getting to know one another pleased him greatly.  

They were like tarot cards in their way, he thought.  A given card from the deck could mean one thing on its own, and something else in company of other cards.  There were more sides to each of his new players than perhaps they themselves even knew.  

As they grew closer to each other, he thought, they would eventually begin to uncover their secrets, and then things would really get interesting.

And aside from the four already within his realm, there were others on the way.  He would have them all assembled, in the end.  And what a show it would be.

"Mr. Ohtori," came a rich, female voice over his intercom.  "Miss Yanagi is here to see you."  

"That's fine, Miss Tamiko," Akio said.  "You can send her in."  

He smiled as he thought of his temporary Rose Bride.  Amaya Yanagi was many things, he thought, but he was honestly quite glad Rose Bride would soon no longer be one of them.  The role had never really fit her, Akio thought, but then...  

"Any port in a storm," he murmured.

"Did you say something, Mr. Ohtori?" asked Amaya, standing in his open doorway.

"Nothing important, Amaya," he said, giving her his best smile.  It was the smile he had used on countless women over the years, the one that melted hearts almost instantaneously.  And his dear little Amaya was no exception.

It was a pity, he thought, that his time with her would be drawn to a close so soon.

________________________________

Utena stared through the windowpane of the tiny hotel room as the rain slackened and the dark sky began to brighten. Himemiya's head rested on her chest, and the room was silent, save for the sound of her soft breathing and the pitter-patter of the rain. Eventually, the quiet was broken by the sound of an alarm clock. Utena kicked it off the table, irrationally hoping to delay Anthy's departure for a few hours. It was to no avail, as she felt Anthy begin to stir against her.

"You didn't sleep," Anthy whispered. It wasn't a question.

"No," Utena admitted, burying her face in Anthy's mass of gorgeous violet hair, breathing in her scent.

"Neither did I," Anthy confessed, reaching up and gently caressing Utena's face once, before slowly extricating herself from her Prince's arms.

Utena watched Anthy as she slowly moved about the room and got dressed. Her eyes drank in Anthy's every detail.  Utena knew, with a dawning feeling of sick horror, that this might be the last time she would ever be able to see Anthy again. After Anthy was done dressing, Utena slowly followed her to the small table in the kitchen of the hotel suite they were staying in. Utena nabbed some donuts from the refrigerator while Anthy grabbed an apple. As Utena sat down, Anthy started to leave the kitchen and head for the door.

"Himemiya… you're leaving?" Utena asked as she felt a cold lump settle in her stomach.

"We said goodbye last night," Anthy said quietly. "If I stay too long, I might not be able to make it through that door."

"But… can't we…"

"You know it's too dangerous to be seen together. If his men see us travel to the school together, they'll know we're planning something and that I'm not serious. Even renting this room was pushing it."

"Anthy… goodbye," Utena said, her voice choked.

"Goodbye, Utena," Anthy whispered back, before leaving the hotel room.

Utena ran to the window and watched as Anthy emerged from the hotel entrance a minute later, and climbed into a taxi. Utena waited until the taxi was out of sight before she went back to the bedroom.  Carefully grabbing Anthy's favorite sweater, she clutched it close and curled up in the spot where they had laid the previous night, silently weeping out her sorrow.****

________________________________

Another night had passed without Anthy, and Utena had hardly slept.  She stared gloomily through the window as the sun peeked over the edge of the trees outside.  Utena hadn't expected this to be so difficult. The days were easy enough, she supposed, when she could bury herself in her class work and quiet routine of information gathering, but the nights… the nights were when the dreams came and when there was no one there to hold her close when she woke up screaming, no one to hold her close and whisper that it would be okay, that she was free now. Miraculously, the person who was supposed to have been her roommate did not seem to have shown up.  That at least made it unnecessary to explain what was going on to her roommate, though she knew that her nightmares creeped out the other people living on the floor.  That was fine with her--she generally avoided them as best she could. No way of knowing yet who was under HIS control.

Never one to let depression and gloom to keep her down long, she quickly dressed in a tank top and shorts--the weathermen had promised another scorcher today--and went outside to take a jog around the campus. The running helped clear the veil of exhaustion that had hung over her for most of the previous day. Utena considered trying to find some sleeping pills. She wasn't sure how many more near sleepless nights she could take. And even during the increasingly rare times she managed to fall asleep, she often had horrible nightmares. It was perhaps the worst thing about her separation from Anthy--there was no longer that knowledge that even in the dark of night, Anthy would always be there to hold her and soothe her pain and brush away her tears. Utena forced herself to speed up, trying to escape her memories.

"Running," she whispered. "I'm always running."

*          *          *

The first few years after Himemiya had found her had a sort of dreamy quality about them. Anthy was filthy stinking rich, having raided several of Akio's huge bank accounts and stolen a large portion of his money before he'd realized what she was doing and shut off her access. Of course, by then it was too late. Their first home was in a little house in Tokyo but they hadn't stayed long. Instead, they left after a few weeks and took the first plane they could find to California in the United States. After a few months, they had moved to the East Coast and done their best to lose themselves in the general population. Anthy insisted that Utena work and get her high school diploma, so after she learned enough English to get by, she took a hodgepodge of night courses and correspondence courses whenever and wherever she could. With Anthy's encouragement, she began taking self-defense classes, basic fencing courses, and even learned how to handle a pistol, more for the purposes of helping her to regain her confidence than anything else.

One summer, they had decided to tour Europe for vacation. It was during their visit to Zurich, Switzerland, that Utena began to notice an oddity. Wherever they went, they were followed but identical-looking men in black suits, oftentimes driving in black cars, and once even a black helicopter. After about two days of this, Utena pulled Anthy into a women's bathroom in museum they were visiting.

"I think we're being followed," Utena said bluntly.

"I know," Anthy responded calmly. "They've been following us ever since we left Japan."

"Ever since… they're not… they're not…"

"They're his," Anthy said quietly.

"Oh no… what do we do? Should we try and take them out?"

Anthy smiled a little. "No, we can't. Even if we succeeded in beating all thirty of them, he'd just send more. We'll just have to move on again."

"You mean we have to run away? Again?"

"There's nothing else we can do, is there?"

And that was when the idea of returning first started to grow.

*          *          *

After Utena finished her run, she returned to the dorms, feeling considerably better than when she had left. She quickly headed for the shower, and again she was grateful that the dorms rooms all had their own bathrooms. She did not fancy explaining the scar on her stomach to the other students. The shower helped soothe her aching muscles, but not so well as Himemiya's backrubs. After she got showered, she quickly dressed in a white T-shirt and blue jeans. It was interesting, she noted to herself, how she was now inconspicuous from the rest of the campus bunch unlike at the academy with her boy's uniform.  She checked her time and noted she had a chance for a quick breakfast before classes started. With a sigh, she slung her bag over her shoulder and moved forward to face the day.

________________________________

Chores were the only thing occupying Anthy's time when she was alone.  Despite her room being immaculate, she would repeat tasks over and over in order to keep herself busy.  Since returning to Ohtori, it felt like the only normal thing at times.  After experiencing the rest of the world, Anthy thought of Ohtori as a different dimension, a reflection of the past she had escaped.  Now she was back in this world.  Chores could only last so long, and once they ended she would start thinking about how the room felt empty without Utena.

She returned to her dorm for a quick meal and to gather some supplies from her room.  When classes had ended, she planned on getting to work right away on the rose garden.  The disarray it was in needed her attention.  The evening was becoming very late, meaning there would be less of a chance of people around to bother her.  From her closet she removed some gardening supplies, pruning sheers and the like.  The garden house had a storage room where supplies were kept, but these were special.  They were ordinary gardening tools, but the antique silver watering can was one of her favorite possessions.  It wasn't because of its worth but the sentiment.  Utena gave it to her as a birthday present.  When they had lived in America, Anthy had kept a small garden.  Utena had disapproved at first; the flowers were a painful reminder of what Anthy had slaved over for a long time.  "This isn't your job," Utena would sigh every morning she saw her tending to her flowers, but Anthy would smile, telling her that habits were hard to break, and that she enjoyed growing them for herself and only herself, which made the difference.  ****

Anthy grabbed the handle of the case the tools were carried in, placing the can on her desk in order to close her closet door.  She was all set to go, but before she picked up her treasure she had to take the cell phone resting next to it.  This had come into her possession soon after she left Utena in that hotel room.  

She wondered what Utena was doing.  Would she somehow know what transpired yesterday morning with her brother?  The cell phone was his way of keeping her on a short leash, contacting her whenever he wanted on a private line, knowing where she was when needed.  While Utena was at Ohtori, she couldn't go to her when it could mean putting her at risk.  There was almost no way to alert her of things to come, because it could be dangerous to be seen together often.

But Utena would surely know that dark moments were to come.  When she returned to her brother's graces, it was inevitable that duels would begin sooner or later, and that her time in this dorm room wouldn't be for long, because she would have to live in the new quarters assigned to her and her victor.

If her brother knew what she was planning with Utena...

No matter how hard things became, Anthy was going to remain determined to keep up appearances.  What she told her brother at her return had to sound as true as possible.

*          *          *

"So was I right with what I said just now?" his sensual but dark voice asked as he looked up at her from his desk, leaning back in his chair in comfort.  She looked at his ageless face with its smirk that never changed, as she processed his words, catching the cell phone he slid across the cherry wood finish.  His tie was still not fully done, she noticed.  The office where he carried out business looked larger than the one at Ohtori Academy but nonetheless felt more compact.

"Yes," she said flatly, averting her eyes not out of secrecy, but to keep up her abiding appearance in front of him.

"What was I right about?" he inquired, seeming to almost enjoy her standing on the other side of the desk once more, wanting her to repeat his words.

Anthy answered, "That I would return to you one day because this place is where I, the true Rose Bride, cannot escape."

*          *          *

Anthy was startled out of her memory when the silver watering can began to wobble.  After pocketing the phone, she lifted the tiny lid.  Popping out was her exotic pet.  "ChuChu!" she exclaimed, helping the monkey-mouse out of the opening, extending a finger.  He grabbed it, holding on as Anthy pulled him out.  He did have a knack of getting into everything.  He made a low "chu" noise, dropping to the table to sip from a cup of tea she left out for him.

"I've got to go, ChuChu," she announced, taking hold of the watering can's handle.  "I don't know when I'm going to be back tonight.  Look after the place, okay?"

The little creature continued to happily slurp his tea.

Heading back inside and locking the balcony doors, Anthy cleaned her cup and tied back her hair at the nape of her neck.  With no formal dress code at Ohtori University, unlike Ohtori Academy, Anthy was allowed to dress in a simple yellow sundress and matching sweater. Slipping on her brown loafers at the foyer, Anthy smoothed her clothes and left for the rose garden.

There was much to think about on the way, like what else had transpired at her meeting.  She was told by her brother to attend the fencing tryouts that would be hosted by the team in a few days.  While the kendo club would have its participants, the fencing team's tryouts had built up a lot of hype.  It was going to look more like a tournament than anything else.

Anyone could say things hadn't changed a bit from the academy to the university.  However, there was a major difference, one only a few people knew about at the moment.  The entire Student Council could walk by her and wouldn't even stop to greet her.  They weren't rude people.  On the contrary, they were well mannered.  Each one of them was suffering from a memory lapse.  Anthy was almost jealous of it.  They remembered their academy days, but couldn't recall anything about duels or the Rose Bride.  Her brother instructed her to slowly but surely resolve the problem, remedied by a simple introduction.  They would have to get back to work soon, though they wouldn't be alone.  It was a bit frightening.  A few new competitors outside of the Student Council--with whom she was at least familiar--might be the new victors.


	3. Chapter 2: Unexpected Meetings

**Chapter 2: Unexpected Meetings**

_One of the things that first struck me about Ohtori Academy, besides the constantly high temperatures, was the intricate layout of the campus. It appeared deceptively simple, but upon closer inspection, one would quickly discover that it had a mazelike design. One could easily get lost among the sprawling gardens, the elegant white buildings, and the swarming throngs of students. Above it all looms the Chairman's Tower, the proud spire serving as a guidepost to help the lost judge their locations… or perhaps a cancerous growth marring the landscape. I was never quite able to decide which, though after having had time to reflect in the hospital, I find myself thinking of it more and more as the latter._

-from the diary of Tsuchiya Ruka.

Despite the fact that his brother had never been to Ohtori University, Mikado found that there was little difference from the university and the now abandoned academy, judging by his brother's work. Mikado had declined offers of help with his heavy suitcases and black bag when he had arrived at the university, and was now rapidly coming to regret it. The heat made walking around uncomfortable, and carrying the enormous suitcases while using a cane was becoming downright painful. It did not help that he had only a vague idea of where the East Hall was located.

Unable to bear their weight any longer, he quickly found a shady tree and carefully sat down his two large suitcases, then sank gratefully to the ground, leaning his cane on the tree trunk. He pulled a handkerchief from his pocket and mopped his forehead, wiping off the sweat that had accumulated there. He closed his eyes briefly and let out a deep sigh. It had been a mistake to try and lug all this stuff to his dorm on his own.

"Well, well… this is an unexpected surprise!" murmured a voice.

He blinked and looked upward at the tall, red haired man clad in an elaborate black uniform that looked somewhat militaristic. "Touga? Is that you?"

"It's been quite some time, Mikado. How have you been doing? And you can just call me Touga. We're still friends, after all."

Mikado smiled. "It's good to see you again! I'm sorry I didn't talk to you after I made it out of the hospital, but I haven't talked to much of anyone lately. All the therapy and studying… and, well, I only got out of the wheelchair two months ago."

Touga nodded sympathetically. "I gather you've just arrived here, then?"

"Yes," Mikado replied. "The doctors had some last minute tests to run, and it took us longer than we thought to get the results back, so I was a little delayed. But at least now I can finally get back to a normal life."

"Mmmhmm," Touga said, looking thoughtfully at the cane next to where Mikado was sitting. "Would you like some help with those?" he asked abruptly, as he reached down and easily picked up both suitcases, not waiting for Mikado to answer.

"Would you?" Mikado looked almost pathetically grateful. "They really are too heavy for me…"

Touga smiled at him. "It's not a problem. Where are you were staying?"

"I'm in the East Dorm, room 116."

*              *                 *

"So how has your mother been doing?" Touga asked as he helped Mikado to unpack his things.

Mikado sighed. "It's been hard for us since Ruka died. She's been working two jobs, but at least she's making ends meet now. It was a miracle I was able to get a full scholarship to come here.  I never could have afforded it otherwise. I think she'll be all right. I promised to call her every couple of days so she doesn't get too lonely."

The two worked in companionable silence for a few more minutes. "Say," Mikado finally said, "What is up with this campus? It looks more like a country club than a school."

Touga laughed. "Chairman Ohtori wants the campus to look attractive. It brings in more students, or so I'm told."

Mikado paused a moment at the mention of that name, then stretched and sat down on his bed. "Well, looks like that's the last of it," he said.

"Well, it was nice to see you again. Unfortunately, I have to go class now," Touga said. "By the way… that's an interesting-looking ring you're wearing.

Mikado blinked. "Oh… it belonged to my brother."

Touga walked over to Mikado, a bit too close for comfort, and gently grasped his hand and inspected the black ring with a critical eye. "Yes… a very interesting ring indeed. A piece of advice for you, Mikado."

"Oh?"

"If you're smart, you'll throw that ring away and forget you ever saw it."

"What is that supposed to mean?" Mikado asked, his eyes narrowing.

"Nothing… I have to be going, now," he said as he abruptly released Mikado's hand, turned and walked out the open door.

"Touga, wait a second!"

By the time Mikado had hobbled over to the door, however, Touga was already gone. He sighed and returned to his bed and sat down, staring aimlessly into space. After a moment, Mikado turned to the black bag on the floor and reached inside, pulling out his brother's diary. He paged through it until he found what he wanted.

_Perhaps one of the things that have changed the most since I last came to Ohtori is Kiryuu Touga. He is not how he used to be in the old days. He is full of false smiles and dark mysteries. He plays the women expertly, and they eagerly swarm about him like so many flies, eager for a taste of the honey. He has an air of knowing about him, a man who is supremely confident in himself and his control. His every word seems to be full of insinuations and lies. He has become important in ways that I was not, and in ways that I don't understand. His behavior toward Saionji is contemptuous and condescending. I do not recognize him anymore. I don't think Mikado would either._

_Ohtori changes everyone, but it has changed Touga the most. And not for the better, I think._

________________________________

With the hundreds of students who attended Ohtori University, there was no lack of special-interest clubs and sports.  A well-rounded education at the refined school usually meant involvement in activities outside the classroom.  With the new semester of classes beginning, the bulletin boards were covered in neon-colored flyers and white posters announcing the various openings and upcoming meetings that needed to be attended in order to join an event.  Most notable were the large posters for the kendo and fencing clubs that could be found anywhere from the cafeteria to next to the restrooms, with signup sheets attached next to them that were collected at the end of each school day.  But those who were not interested in either club (a rare find for one attending Ohtori) could seek out the game teams for chess or _go_, or look into sports like tennis, basketball or track.  However, there was one team that wasn't pushing for the hype like the others.

It came to the surprise of many who arrived at the university and walked the campus to find a large building with one entire side rendered in floor-to-ceiling French windows, each frosted with the outline of the familiar rose symbol to which students quickly became accustomed.  Through the glass, an Olympic-sized pool was visible, with diving platforms towering over it and bleachers and benches surrounding it.  The pristine water would reflect the setting sun in the late evening, while in the morning light fixtures hanging from the ceiling illuminated the room.  The swim hall was only built recently, and to those who read their introduction packets to Ohtori, the swim team was only a blurb in the directory of what Ohtori had to offer, followed by only a picture taken before the building's completion of what it would look like when finished.  It didn't do the real thing justice.  Like everything on campus, it looked much more impressive in person than the image in the brochure.

While the other forums had their share of members and candidates, the swim hall was practically devoid of people.  The blurb was most likely overlooked by many of the new students.  With no advertising for the swim team or sign-up sheets, everyone was going by word of mouth, which currently carried the news that the swim team captain was purposely delaying tryouts because she only wanted winning swimmers to come to her instead of putting up with agonizing tryouts.

And at the thought of such gossip, Kozue smiled.

Lying at the edge of the highest platform, the captain of the presently member-less team enjoyed the silence.  Kozue was completely alone, appearing relaxed as she lay on her side, eyes closed and her head lying on one arm while the other rested on the black nylon-spandex blend of her swimsuit that accentuated her flat back and curvy hips.  She kept her blue hair short since her academy days, as did her twin brother Miki, but both had added some length around their faces.  

Miki wouldn't like to see her lying so close to the edge of the platform, but Kozue was neither scared of the height nor falling off.  She was aware of what she was doing, just like she knew the risk of not spreading the word about her club.

Her peacefulness was suddenly halted when she heard the sound of one of the metal entrance doors being pushed violently open.  Blue eyes unbolted and followed the woman entering her domain.  High heels stampeded across the concrete briskly, and Kozue slid her body up to a sitting position with an annoyed sigh.  The woman was looking from left to right, seeming to mutter ill words under her breath.  She wore a high-collar blouse in an ugly mauve color matched with a garish maroon high-waisted skirt, carrying a beige folder in her hand.  Her offensive demeanor showed even with the large-framed, dark-tinted glasses on her face, and her lips were pressed in a grimace as tight as the green hair pulled back in its bun.  Stopping in front of the bench where Kozue's things were currently piled, the middle-aged woman picked up the dry white towel before throwing it back down with anger and putting her hand on her hip.  Obviously, she was waiting for Kozue with little patience.

Rising from her spot, Kozue walked toward the ladder as if she was going to climb down to meet her, but she stopped short, turned around and started to run.  Once at the edge, she jumped from the platform, flipping twice before elongating herself and diving into the pool with a slight splash, causing the woman to gasp in shock and drop her papers as she turned around to see the once calm surface of the water now rippling and waving.  Kozue was capable of causing less of a splash, but she purposely chose to scare the frigid lady for intruding in on her solitude with a somewhat imperfect dive.  

"Miss Kaoru!" the screechy voice of Mrs. Haniko echoed throughout the room, as she bent down to pick up the papers that scattered out of the folder.  "Make your presence known properly when I am in the room."  
  
As she resurfaced, Kozue made a few strokes to reach the ladder, stepping out of the tepid water.  She continued to not greet the university guidance counselor as she pushed back her damp hair and headed over to the bench where Mrs. Haniko was standing, leaving footprints as she went.  Kozue was tempted to laugh, "I thought I did make you aware," but instead she flashed her simple smile while wringing her hair.  

The counselor moved back away from Kozue's dripping figure and snorted.  "I assume you know why I'm here."  
  


"After receiving the many letters you sent recommending me to 'do something with my swim team _'or else,' _" Kozue quoted in her flat tone, while drying her hands off on her towel, "I can make a good guess."

"You don't seem to be taking any of my warnings seriously!" Mrs. Haniko continued to scold loudly, despite being only a few feet away from the freshman.  "You continue to do nothing, while other clubs prosper.  I'm sick of having whining students ask me why they haven't heard news of swim meetings.  As captain, you are supposed to be handling this situation.   You knowthis isn't my job!"  
  


"Then don't do it," Kozue said nonchalantly, briefly eyeing her agitator.  She couldn't see why the Chairman would keep such a crone on his staff.  Her pestering seemed to be more annoying than it had been when she worked at the academy.  At least Kozue took pleasure in the factthat people were either too stupid or nervous to approach her about her team, leaving themselves the only other choice but to face the old crone.

Her words made Mrs. Haniko press her lips into a firm line.  "Listen to me, young lady!  I don't care how skilled a swimmer you are.  I'll make sure you're stripped of your position if your grades even slip a letter.  You better start doing something with that title.  If you don't put a team of at least five together, you won't be eligible for competitions.  This swim hall wasn't built for your own enjoyment."  
  


"Oh?" Kozue interjected, raising an eyebrow.

"I'm serious, Miss Kaoru.  You might be your brother's twin, but I don't see how you two aren't on the same level both academically and with these school activities," stated the counselor as she shuffled through her papers, pulling out one to shove in Kozue's view.  "Now take this.  I'm ordering you to make copies of this and place them up around the school by the end of classes today or I'll go directly to the Chairman and have this club shut down permanently."

Grabbing the paper while keeping her customary expressionless face, Kozue glanced over the words.  She made a small twinge of disgust suddenly.  The flyer announced:

SWIM TEAM TRYOUTS ALL THIS WEEK.  HAVE FUN IN OHTORI'S BRAND NEW SWIM HALL.  PASSION OVER EXPERIENCE, SAYS CAPTAIN KOZUE KAORU.  APPROVED BY COUNSELOR HANIKO. 

_Passion over experience?_  Kozue never said anything of the sort and if she _were_ to make a signup sheet, she would specify that she wanted _only experienced swimmers.  _

Haniko was smug and happy with herself.  "I'll leave you to your duties."  
  
Once she turned around, the guidance counselor was halted by the sound of paper tearing.  She whirled around in surprise, coming face-to-face with Kozue's smile.  "I won't be needing this," Kozue stated, ripping the paper into fours and then placing it on top of the pile in Mrs. Haniko's hands from which it came.  

"I beg your pardon!"

"I've already spoken to the Chairman," Kozue said, immediately seeing the crone flinch.  "We bumped into each other the other evening when I came to meet my brother at the Chairman's Tower.  He doesn't seem to have any complaints with how I'm handling things.  Those who want to join will reveal themselves as time unfolds.  My teammates, whoever they may be, will be destined for great things, I assure you.  Besides, it's not like this building is hidden in the shadows," she added, gesturing toward the windows.  "People need to show me a spark.  Everyone knows I'm the captain, and if they can't summon the courage to come and face me to ask for a tryout, then they don't belong on my team.

"I'll have my team assembled.  Now, if you'll excuse me, I have other things to do," she finished, grabbing her items from the bench and walking toward** the locker room, listening to the sound of high heels storm frantically back the way they came.  **

________________________________

"It's only the second day of classes, and the teachers are already locking me out for being late," said an irate Akemi to herself.  A heavy sigh followed.  She was one of the very few students roaming the campus grounds, because most were in class.  What annoyed her most was how easily everyone else navigated the school with ease.  The university was planned out much like the academy that preceded it, but she never attended the academy.  Her irritation with her teachers and having to repeatedly depend on others for directions was getting to her, and she was going to put an end to it this morning.

At least yesterday's collision with Kouu and the loss of her book inadvertently introduced her to friendly faces.  Dinner went splendidly with him, Taki and Ran, ending the frantic day of scampering around campus on a good note.  Ran could hold intelligent conversation.  Taki was funny and knowledgeable when it came to kendo.  Their argument with Kouu about the wonders of the Japanese sport over fencing was laughable, as proven by Ran's excessive giggling at Kouu and Akemi's behavior.  The two talked as if no one else were in the room once they got going on the topic.  

"Well, with Kouu and the others in class, I guess I'll have to relieve my tension like I used to do," Akemi stated, clutching at the papers in one hand while the other gripped her black school bag.  On top of a small pile of worn-out sheet music was a map of the school.  Stopping in front of a building only a short distance away from the kendo hall, Akemi checked her map one more time to make sure the building circled on it matched the sign:  DRAMA AND MUSIC HALL.  "I can remember this.  Killing two birds with one stone," she smirked proudly, dashing up the steps.  "Lock me out of here, why don't you!"

Entering the building, she observed her surroundings.  It didn't look much different from the layout of the other buildings, as she passed classroom after classroom.  Proceeding down the hallway, her ears picked up the sound of piano music.  Instead of being agitated that someone was occupying the piano she so wanted to use, Akemi was calm.  The song was lovely, soft and at times slow, somehow being happy yet sad at once.  The melody compelled her to come nearer.  

The music became vividly clear as she rounded the next corner of the hallway, seeing the door to one of the rooms slightly ajar.  Akemi was quiet, not wanting to disturb the pianist.  She peeked inside the small gap and her eyes went wide in awe of the simple elegance of the room with its white walls and tiled marble floor.  Large French windows were lined against the opposite wall, revealing the outside's brilliant blue sky and lush forest.  Near the window was a black grand piano emphasized by the white surroundings.  

At the bench of the piano sat a young man.  He was much too young to be an instructor, but he played the song as if at the piano for all of his life, his long fingers dancing across the ivory keys.  He had pale skin, short cerulean hair that layered around his adolescent face and wore a navy overcoat over white pants, appearing more like a young military ambassador than a student.  Music sheets were on the stand in front of him, but he paid no attention to them as he sat with eyes closed, a skilled and impressive player.  "Wonderful…" she whispered to herself.

"What's wonderful?" whispered a voice next to her.  She covered her mouth so she wouldn't let out her gasp of surprise and stared at the man who had sidled up next to her.  It was Kouu, who was confused by her behavior.  He took one step back away from her, holding up his black school bag in front of him like a shield.

"Hush," she harshly whispered back, putting a finger to her lip and then peeking back inside the room.  The young man was still playing.  She gazed back at Kouu, this time less aggravated.  "What are you doing here?" she muttered.

He lowered his bag.  Pushing his glasses up higher on the bridge of his nose, Kouu came closer as Akemi carefully slid the gap open a little wider for him to see inside.  "My class ended early, so I decided to stroll around to see what else the campus had to offer.  I guess you had the same idea."  Akemi was already acting oblivious toward him.  Leaning close to her face, Kouu decided to see what was so interesting.  "He's good."  
  
She nodded an affirmative.  "Isn't he?  I would very much like to meet whoever he is."

"Then why are we standing out here spying instead of opening the door and introducing ourselves?" Kouu inquired, almost laughing at her strange behavior. 

"I don't want to interrupt him," explained Akemi firmly.  

"I'm sure Mr. Kaoru wouldn't mind," he assured.  "By what I know, he's friendly."

"It would be a waste to bother him, and I have plenty of time before my next class.  I came to play out my frustration, but I find listening to him a lot more relaxing than…" She paused, turning to face him.  "Wait, Mr. Kaoru?  You _know_ him?"  
  


Kouu swallowed hard and leaned back a little away from her excited face, a chuckle escaping him.  "Not personally, no," he whispered, rubbing the back of his neck, his nervous expression turning confused.  "You really don't know who he is?  That's Miki Kaoru.  He's a freshman on the fencing team, already established as second in the class and tryouts haven't even started.  He is the Secretary of the Student Council and a genius by what I hear.  Didn't you read the introduction to the school and its members in the packet you received at all?"  
  
This was the second time she made a mistake of not recognizing one of the elite members of the university, recalling she never read anything of the sort.  "I thought it wouldn't matter.  I did notice that his clothes resemble the man I saw in the cafeteria, the Council President.  Have you seen him?  He's very tall, long red hair, dark uniform.  His name is…"

"Touga Kiryuu," announced the young man at the piano, continuing to play with eyes closed.  The stunned pair looked at him through the opening.  He seemed as if he barely noticed them at all.

"Good afternoon," welcomed an alluring voice from behind.

"And he's standing right behind you," Miki declared.

Akemi looked behind her to see that the man from the cafeteria _was_ standing behind them, having made no sound in his coming.  She couldn't help but think he was handsomer up close, but her seconds of distraction made her forget that her hand was on the door, and it began sliding open wider and wider.  By the time she noticed, it was too late and she stumbled forward, dropping her papers all over the floor.  Kouu dropped his bag and attempted to catch her, but when Akemi accidentally hit him with her own bag, they ended up spinning around, slipping on one of her piano sheets and tumbling to the floor with Kouu taking the brunt of the fall and Akemi landing on top of him.

The sudden crash of the two strangers across the room startled Miki out of his concentration, causing him to slam down on the keys in alarm and jump up from the bench, his eyes flashing open.  The piano hall was only completely free of people during the early afternoon, when students were at usually at lunch, and late in the evening into night, when the faculty departed for the day.  Miki had few moments of free time during the day to enjoy the room alone in order to work on his compositions and didn't anticipate this situation at all.

"My word!  Are you two all right?" exclaimed Miki, dashing to the pair.  They appeared startled and frozen, staring at each other.  Their faces were red with embarrassment. 

Taking the girl by the elbow, Touga removed her from her awkward position.  "Let me help you up, Miss," the senior insisted.  As the girl took sight of Touga's hand around her arm, her flushed expression deepened.

"T-thank you," she stuttered, accepting his assistance, then promptly pulling away.  She was still unable to stop gazing at him.

   
Miki helped her companion rise.  He watched Akemi with concern as Touga handed her the bag she dropped.  "I'm becoming too familiar with Ohtori's floors," he quipped, fixing the crooked glasses on his face. 

Feeling their spill was his fault, Miki began to apologize, bending down to gather the scattered papers.  "I'm so sorry if I startled you.  I didn't mean to cause the two of you to stumble.  I hope I didn't ruin anything."

"I believe I'm the one that startled her," Touga laughed.  "I have that effect on women."

The girl blinked away her daze, turning to regard Miki.  "No, you shouldn't apologize," she assured, watching him gather the last of her things.  "It should be me saying--"

"Rachmaninoff," Miki interrupted, observing the sheet's crumpled corners and nail indentations.  The ridges on the edge showed they had been torn from a book.  "This is Piano Concerto No.3.  For such a lovely piece, its pages are highly abused."  Handing her the stack along with her school map, Miki let out his trademark smile.  "If you wanted to play, you could have come in and asked."

"How did you know we were here?" the tall blond asked.

"I _was absorbed in my work until I heard you laughing," Miki answered._

The young man cleared his throat, and Akemi frowned at him.  "Sorry about that."

"Maybe they wanted to spy on your work," Touga said lightly, walking into the room.  "Not very good spies, by the look of them."

Miki's smile brightened but the girl jumped in front of him and Touga, not seeing the humor.  "We're not spies!" she barked at Touga, who raised an eyebrow, glancing back at the door they had fallen through.  Miki held back a chuckle as she followed his gaze.  "Well, maybe we _were spying, but I was certainly __not trying to steal Mr. Kaoru's work, and neither was Kouu."  _

"Call me Miki," he suggested, "and I do believe he was only joking."

"My apologies if I upset you," Touga added, smiling at her.  "Miss…?"

"Akemi," she responded.  "Akemi Kawabe."  

"A beautiful name…" he muttered.  She suddenly seemed apprehensive under his gaze.  Miki could see Touga's charm was affecting her.  She briskly walked around him and headed for the door.

"Akemi?" her friend called to her.  "I thought you didn't have class."

"I've got to go," she announced in her rush.

"But I thought you wanted to play," Miki said, his expression mirroring Kouu's.

"Some other time!" she shouted on her way out.  "It was nice meeting you!"

"Wait!  Akemi!" cried Kouu as he rushed after her, leaving the councilmen truly confused.

"What an interesting pair," Miki commented to himself, then looked up at Touga.  "Maybe you are right about being the one to scare her."

"I suppose so."

Putting his hands in the pockets of his black overcoat, the senior walked with Miki to the piano.  Miki's mind wandered off the duo and to Touga.  He couldn't understand why Touga was visiting him.  It wasn't like the Student Council president to come to the piano hall in his free time.  "Touga, am I late for lunch, or are you spying on me too?" he asked cheerfully, taking the sheet music from the stand and placing the pages in a folder.

"Just wanting to chat," he answered, leaning against the piano.

"Chat?" Miki repeated, pulling the hood over the piano keys.

"How do you like living on your own?" he asked, proceeding right into their chat.  
  


"Fine," Miki answered, stretching the word out.  He liked Touga's company, but usually it was only during social gatherings, Student Council meetings or the occasional lunch over the topic of work or something Touga had to say.  It never was spur of the moment about Miki's personal life.

"I hope your sister wasn't too upset that she would be living in the campus dorms without you," Touga said.

"I don't think Kozue was pleased about the fact that we were going to be living separately, unlike at the academy," Miki responded, blinking away his confusion and letting his thoughts go.  "I tried to acquire a single room for her, but it seemed that they were all taken.  Sharing my single would be too compact."  He thought about the situation for a moment.  "Well, perhaps a roommate will make the transition easier on her than living alone.  Hopefully, whoever she is will be able to get along with Kozue."  

Miki wasn't comfortable talking about his sister much, especially to other guys like Touga.  She had been known to hang out with men often and on a few occasions, he had seen Touga with her.  Miki didn't like to discuss how he felt about many personal things, so he changed the subject.  "How about lunch?  I missed breakfast this morning, so I'm famished."

"Actually that's one of the reasons I'm here.  Forgive me, but I must cancel," Touga said, already proceeding towards the door.  

  
Miki sighed, being right after all that Touga had something he wanted to discuss and the chat was needless.  "Is it Council business?" he asked, following.

"Now that you mention it, we will be having a meeting very soon," Touga answered vaguely.  "I'm going to go inform Saionji and Juri about it, so you don't have to worry about it interrupting your schedule.  There was something else I wanted to talk about with you.  Have you been to the school's rose garden?"

"Not recently," Miki answered, following Touga out of the room, closing the door behind them.  His nose crinkled at the thought of it.  "It looks like it hasn't been attended to in quite a while.  I don't see why the Chairman doesn't let the gardeners who cut the grass and the hedges around the campus work on the garden.  The roses look sickly, the path is never swept, and because no one has trimmed the plants it looks like a jungle.  I've met the young woman that is assigned to take care of all those things a few times, but she doesn't seem capable of doing them."  
  


"Ah!" interjected Touga.  "Amaya…"

"Yes," Miki confirmed.  "I try to be polite to her, but she seems insincere.  I don't believe she likes tending to the roses, but she does it nonetheless.  I remember at the academy, the garden was beautiful.  The Chairman brought over many of the teachers and workers from the old school.  I wonder why he didn't bring whoever was the previous rose gardener here."  
  


A small laugh escaped Touga as they neared the exit to the building.  "I really think you should go sometime in the course of your day.  Amaya has essentially been fired from her position.  Ohtori Academy's rose gardener is now Ohtori University's rose gardener."  
  


"Really?" Miki questioned, opening the door for Touga.  

"It's true," Touga replied.  "Looks as good as the academy days.  The gardener has worked very hard in restoring it.  You should go and see her.  She'll be glad to see you again."  
  


"_Again?  But I don't ever remember meeting the gardener at the academy," Miki said, perplexed._

"Trust me.  She'll spark your memory," Touga said, waving farewell.  Watching his senior leave in the direction of the Chairman's Tower, Miki couldn't help but think Touga was acting extremely strange today.  He didn't know how to explain it.  Reaching into the pocket of his coat, he removed a stopwatch.    

 "I suppose I'll have to eat lunch alone _again," Miki said to himself.   _

________________________________

Infuriated was all that could describe Amaya Yanagi.  A day had already passed since Chairman Akio Ohtori had called her into his office at the Chairman's Tower.  She had come expecting one of two things:  he had a new assignment for her to carry out or he had found free time in his schedule for them to spend a pleasurable afternoon together.  As his newly appointed Rose Bride, she was in his service and would do anything for him, even tending to the garden on campus.  She had no doubt that he could see she was terrible at it.  Amaya had no interest in flowers and couldn't see why they were important to him at all.  Whenever she tried to put an effort into the garden, she would prick herself on the thorns, under- or over-water the roses and eventually make things worse than they were the last time she tried.  

But as much as she loathed the work, she did it for him.  He promised her that she would soon have more to do, tasks that would bring the two of them closer and give her everything she wanted.  But when he called her into her office yesterday, he didn't want to talk about the garden, the Council or anything else she expected.  

What happened had made her angry, and as she walked aimlessly around the campus muttering curses under her breath, she continued to think about their meeting.

*              *                 *

"You're letting me go?" Amaya shouted, repeating his words in disbelief.  The temper she was known for was rising inside her.  This was so sudden.  

"Yes, you will no longer be my Rose Bride," Akio said, his hands clasped behind his back, looking relaxed as he spoke to her.  She couldn't believe that his tone didn't even show signs of regret or sadness.  It was as if he had made the decision without a second thought.

"But…why?" she inquired, storming up to him near the large windows of his office, her dark eyes narrowed as she looked up at as pristine face.  "I've done nothing to disappoint you.  Don't tell me this is about the roses!"

A laugh was caught in his throat.  Amaya couldn't belief he was finding this funny!  "Dear Amaya, don't think I would treat you so unfairly after our long association together.  You had filled a void these last few months, but your services are no longer required."

"I don't understand," she complained, folding her arms across her chest.  "You said I was fine, that I was what you needed.  Now my 'services are no longer required?'"

"Consider me like any good boss looking out for his company.  You were fine, but less than adequate, especially when I've found someone who can fill your position better," he explained.  "The woman you replaced has decided to take back her position.  It _is_ rightfully hers."  
  


"Your sister?" she huffed.  She didn't know much about Akio's sister, except that she was his former Rose Bride, who had left him for reasons he never told her.  Despite not knowing her well, Amaya had distaste for her.  How could someone just abandon her brother, especially someone like Akio?  But currently what was worse was that Akio was taking her back!  "I've been faithful to you and you decide to take that--"

He stopped her, brushing his hand against her cheek and then brushing it through her short black hair.  It had silenced her along with the way his eyes seemed to drink her in.  She hated him at that moment, because she just wanted to be angry with him, but he wouldn't let her.  "Let's not end this badly," he suggested softly.  "She is my sister.  I cannot turn her away.  There is something she can do for me that you cannot.  I sent Touga Kiryuu to the rose garden this morning, and she proved her worthiness with him.  Thank you for your services, but our association has been terminated."

Pulling away from her, he walked towards his desk, leaving her briefly frozen by the window.  At the moment, she wasn't even thinking about what he was referring to with Touga.  Her anger was shifting from him to his sister.  _The selfish bitch, she thought.  _She has taken everything from me.  I will not forgive this.__

"Oh, Amaya," Akio called, interrupting her thoughts.  She looked over at him, watching as he sat in his chair, already resuming his work as he arranged papers in front of him.  "Do not worry about having to leave.  You may still attend the university free of charge, as we had arranged when you came.  Though you may no longer be working for me, I hope you find something else to do with your time."  
  


"Like what?" she muttered, walking toward the door.

"Perhaps you can join a club or sport," he recommended, to which Amaya laughed.

Too upset to look back, she flung the door open.  "Goodbye, Mr. Ohtori."

*              *                 *

What was Amaya to do now?  Her correspondence with the Chairman had been reduced severely.  Overnight she went from one of the most important people in the school to an ordinary student.  Even if no one else knew about her worth as the Rose Bride, she knew.  Personally, it made her feel wanted and powerful.  She had the Chairman's favor.  Everything was wonderful and she had never been more satisfied in her entire life.

Now, it was all gone, thanks to Anthy Himemiya.  Out of the blue she came back, and Amaya lost everything.  The closest relationship she could have to Akio now was if she had a problem at school.  They wouldn't see each other every day.  By the way he spoke to her, every night was taken away as well.   All interest in attending classes was gone, because her concentration was preoccupied with these thoughts.  

She could have stayed in her dorm, ignoring going out at all.  If she wasn't going to class, there was no point to being at the university.  However, Amaya wasn't going to lock herself away from the world.  She wasn't supposed to be in the dorms long for Akio had said she would have quarters separate from the entire university students in due time, but that was no longer to be.  The tiny room in the North Dorm was her residence as long as she was at Ohtori and she hated it, being surrounded by a bunch of people she didn't like.  Before yesterday, she was above all of them, making them easier to tolerate.  Things had since changed, and she deplored being on their level.  There had to be a way to revert things.  The Chairman's suggestion of joining a club could not be it.  "I'm not joining that stupid fencing or kendo team if that is what he wants," she grumbled.

Finally stopping, Amaya noticed she had ended up in front of the rose garden's greenhouse.  Her eyes went wide as she looked at it.  It had changed, and not by her own hand.  The pathway was swept clean.  There wasn't a single dying rose or even a blemish on a petal.  The various colors were now visible with the windows cleaned and the hedges cut.  Amaya would not go inside.  It was obvious that things were official.  This was no longer her job.  A witch had stolen it.

"Good morning," greeted a mellow voice.  Amaya looked over her shoulder to see the woman from her thoughts.  She stood some distance away, seeming timid.  Her soft lips formed a tiny smile.  The picture she had seen was different.  The woman in her presence had her long violet hair down instead of pinned up tightly, and the large glasses were not upon her dark face.  No matter how she looked, Anthy was surely Akio's sister with the same piercing green eyes.  

Turning fully around, Amaya put one hand on her hip.  "So you're Anthy Himemiya…" Amaya said, not closing the distance between them.  It was best, for Anthy's sake.  "You did this, I assume?"  
  


"Yes, Miss Yanagi" she replied.  "I did."

A smirk came to Amaya's face.  At least she wasn't trying to pretend she didn't know who she was.  Most likely she wanted this meeting to end quickly, which was fine with Amaya, but she wasn't going to leave just yet.  "You do good work.  I guess that must be one of the reasons the Chairman likes you so much.  That and he said you could offer something that I can't.  I had wondered what that could be, but it finally came to me when I was thinking about the people your brother told me to become familiar with after you abandoned him."  
  


The girl didn't even flinch.  Amaya was impressed with her unwavering features.  She didn't show it, but Amaya was sure Anthy knew what she was talking about.  "Did Touga thank you for restoring his memories of the duels and you?   I wonder if the others will appreciate it.   The rose garden must have something to do with it if you put your efforts into restoring it so quickly.  It's been so long since anyone has seen you.  Surely they'll want to know where you've been, once they get over their initial shock, that is.  I'm curious myself as to why you've suddenly made a reappearance."  
  


"It is for my brother," she answered.

"Maybe," Amaya responded flatly, shrugging her shoulders.  "Then again, one can never be too sure what a person says is the truth.  I think it will be better if I find out myself.  I always do.  Because of you, I've got plenty of free time.  I will not be out of your life.  One way or another, I will find a way to get back on top."

Sharply turning, Amaya headed toward the campus exit and the dorms.  Passing a group of round white rocks that created a trim around the greenhouse building, Amaya stopped to pick one up, hurling it with all her anger, shattering one of the windows.  "And I'll make sure you won't be there," she whispered, continuing on her way.  
  


________________________________

Mikado had sat for an interminable length of time after Touga's abrupt departure, mulling over his old friend's warning. It had been the ring that worried Touga, Mikado was certain. Did the ring represent some threat on its own, or did Touga have an idea of what Mikado's plans were? If Touga had any idea of what he was planning, why hadn't he threatened Mikado more directly? He seemed nothing like the boy Mikado had known just before he had fallen ill. He had read about Touga's changing in his brother's diary, but it was hard to face the reality of it.

Mikado hadn't even been at the university for more than a few hours, and already things were getting strange. If his brother's diary was to be believed, however, this was typical for the "special" people at Ohtori Academy. He was beginning to wonder just how much Ohtori had changed Juri as well. Dread was beginning to replace his initial anticipation at seeing her again. It didn't help Mikado to know that several pages from his brother's diary had been torn out, leaving him with an unclear picture of some of the things that had transpired at Ohtori Academy after Ruka's return there.

Mikado absently glanced at his watch and realized that it was already lunchtime. His stomach growled as if on cue. Sighing, he reached out for his cane and climbed slowly and painfully to his feet.

*              *                 *

He walked along in comfortable solitude, banishing dark thoughts of revenge and enjoying the bright sunshine, warm air and cool breeze. It seemed to be just about the perfect day. Students ate their lunches under trees enjoying the pleasant atmosphere. At times like this, it was hardest for Mikado to believe there was anything sinister about Ohtori University, that it was just a perfectly normal school with an overly creative architect. But he knew better. The evidence was right in his brother's diary. As he passed the building that contained the fencing hall, Mikado glanced inside the windows idly… and froze as he saw an all too familiar female with dark green eyes and orange hair expertly disarming another clumsy and unskilled fencer with a move that Ruka had been fond of using himself.

Juri Arisugawa had really changed since Mikado had last seen her. She was taller and more filled out, her orange hair styled into elaborate ringlets. She had been very pretty before, but now she was gorgeous, with all the grace and poise of a dancer.

He paused, considering whether or not he should go inside and greet her. Remembering his strange chat with Touga, however, he decided against it. He had all the time in the world to see her. There would be other opportunities. He had to admit, though, that he was afraid he would have a reunion with a stranger. Juri's letters to him had hinted at problems on occasion, but nothing like the lunatic's paradise Ruka had written about in such painful detail in his diary. What else had Juri kept from him? He wasn't sure he wanted to know.

He observed the fencers for another moment, wishing he could join them. Unbeknownst to him, Juri glanced his way just before he merged with the crowd of hungry students moving toward the cafeteria.

*              *                 *

Mikado grimaced at the slop that Ohtori University sold as _food.  At the hospital, Dr. Lang had always made sure he was given decent meals. Unfortunately, it seemed as though the university did not adhere to the same standards as the hospital. Mikado grumbled and made his way through the crowd, looking for a place to sit down. He gritted his teeth in irritation as someone banged into him yet again, causing his soda to splash all over his tray. Mikado decided that the next idiot who hit him would get whacked with his cane._

The cafeteria was a very large room, absolutely packed with a mob of students that seemed oddly faceless to him. There was a pleasant-looking open-air patio that didn't seem quite as crowded, separated from the main dining room by a glass wall. The cafeteria and the patio were both packed, but Mikado finally spied a table that was unoccupied except by one student with blue hair. Mikado carefully navigated through the throng of chattering students without getting hit again and managed to sit himself down across from the seated student. 

"Is it always this packed in here?" Mikado asked.

"Oh, it's always a huge mess in the first… few…"

*Click* went the stopwatch in the young man's hands as he trailed off, eyes widening as he took a good look at Mikado. Mikado instantly realized who the man seated across from him must be, especially since he was wearing a dark Student Council uniform. He also realized that his appearance had to be something of a shock to the Student Council Secretary.

"Tsuchiya? Is that… you?"

"Yes and no. My name is Mikado. I heard a lot about you from my brother before he passed on, Miki Kaoru."

Miki paused for a moment. "He couldn't have said all _that much… we didn't have a lot to do with each other. But please forgive my rudeness. I was just… shocked. Your brother left so quickly, and no one except Juri seems to have known why, and she wouldn't say. There were rumors, of course…"_

  
Mikado quietly filed those tidbits of information away in his head and pasted a smile onto his face. It would be best, he decided, to reveal as little as possible so as to keep any potential enemies in the dark.

"He passed on very shortly after he left the Academy, I'm sorry to say," Mikado said solemnly.

"You have my sympathies, Mr. Tsuchiya."

"I appreciate it."

There was a somewhat uncomfortable silence. Mikado ate, not tasting the food, waiting for Miki to say something else.

"I didn't realize that Ruka had a brother," Miki said after a long moment.

"My brother was not one for small talk," Mikado replied, "Even with family and friends, like Juri."

 Miki took the bait. "Oh? Do you know Juri?"

"I gather that Juri never spoke of me much?" Mikado asked.

"I never heard of you until today," Miki admitted.

Mikado nodded thoughtfully, wondering how much he could safely tell the young man. "Well, I've been in the hospital for a very long time. I was only released a couple of days ago, and I wanted to surprise Juri. We got into the habit of writing to each other at least once a month shortly after I became ill, and I wanted to surprise her… I wonder if that isn't the best thing to do, though, given how you reacted. They say I look like Ruka, but I hadn't really believed it…" he concluded with a sigh.

"Well, you do look a lot like your brother. And your manner is quite similar to his in some ways. If you had that oddly colored forelock of his, your hair was a bit less wild, and you weren't so thin and pale, you would look almost exactly like him. You're even… you're even…"

Miki's voice trailed off as he looked down at Mikado's hands. There was a ring on the same finger in the same place where Ruka had worn his, except Mikado's ring appeared to be black. The color slowly drained from Miki's face as he took in the black ring. There was something about it that was tremendously unsettling. Miki raised his eyes to meet Mikado's piercing stare and for a moment, he thought Ruka's brother could look right into his mind and tear out all his secrets. But the odd sensation lasted for only a moment.

"Everything all right, Mr. Kaoru?"

Miki coughed. 'Oh, um, yes. May I ask where you got that ring?"

Mikado appeared confused. "Touga asked me about that, too. It belonged to my brother. I think the years have worn away some its shine though," he said, holding his hand up so Miki could better see the ring.

"I just found the design on it to be interesting, that's all."

Mikado nodded, and took a bite of food, then winced. "How can you people _eat_ this stuff?"

Miki chuckled, momentarily forgetting about the ring. "Welcome to Ohtori University, Mr. Tsuchiya."

________________________________

As mid-afternoon approached and early morning classes were dismissed, a select few flocked to the grand eastern part of the campus known as "The Kingdom," which was made up of the music, kendo and fencing halls.  Here, just past the Chairman's Wing and before the school's main road and forest, was where the students coined the name because of the large majority of time spent by the Student Council for their extracurricular activities.  Currently, the buzz surrounded the fencing hall, where Fencing Captain and Student Council Treasurer Juri Arisugawa was challenging those practicing to some fun spars.

After each swift and faultless win by the captain, the large group of awaiting challengers on the floor and scattered spectators on the balcony broke out in cheers and chants for their captain.  Everyone was excited about the upcoming tryouts, a school event that seemed more like a tournament.  A reporter from Rouge Rose, the campus school paper, showed up to get the news on the bright hopefuls, though the spunky girl with pumpkin colored hair seemed to be joining in on the hysteria more than reporting it.  However, they became silent during the duel in awe of her performance, especially as Juri began her thirteenth spar after consecutively winning twelve.

"Next!" exclaimed Juri, holding the blade of her foil in her free hand, choosing the sword that permitted the chest and torso to be a valid target area, unlike the epee which allowed the entire body to serve as a target or the saber which targeted only the entire upper body.  The restriction was a challenge she enjoyed.

The next participant took position at his line on the strip across from the woman in the white padding and orange suit, pulling his mask down over his face.  Between them on the floor was the large red rose symbol of the school.  Though no one could see her face, Juri stood tall with no visible signs of exhaustion.

Raising their swords, each could feel the anticipation of the crowd.  Juri focused on her opponent, her breath warm against her mask, slowing as she readied herself.  Her body had yet to tell her she had had enough.  The energy of the crowd and a good fence kept her going.

Her opponent took the initiative, coming toward her with an attack to her left.  Juri parried.  As he had thrust in hopes of landing a winning hit to her shoulder, another parry stopped him.  Their shoes squeaked on the wood surface and their blades scratched together with each hit and block.

Juri picked up on the weakness of the young man in front of her and distanced herself from him.  Fooled by her movement, he charged too far forward.  Coming on strong, she needed only a few hits to trap him.  Her foil circled around his and after the fencer lost his sturdy grip, she pulled back and then lunged forward.  Juri's blade slightly curved as the point pushed an indentation in the heart section of his chest protector, securing win number thirteen.  And another round of applause from the onlookers.

The young man reached down to pick up his weapon and removed his facemask.  

"You're amazing, Captain," the reporter declared, flailing her pad and pen.

"No, not amazing, Miss Shinohara.  Just perceptive," said Juri in her steely voice, lifting up her mask, revealing glistening sweat on her forehead and bright green-blue eyes to the panting boy before her, who wiped his brow with the back of his gloved hand.  "You kept going for my shoulder and then allowed yourself to be chased after your second attack," she said to him.  "A common error."

"Seems you've been saying that a lot today," he added, joining the others lined against the side.

"Very true," Juri agreed, raising her authoritative tone as she faced her students.  "Tryouts for the fencing team are at the end of this week.  If you expect to make the cut, then you will need to fix the high school mistakes.  I'm here on my free time to help make that happen, and I'll stay until someone here shows me what I want."  Breaking her serious composure, she smiled.  "Or until lunchtime.  I hear the café is serving yakitori, and I don't plan on missing out."

  
The worried students let out laughs and smiles of their own.  "Are you saying you're going again, Captain?" shouted a merry voice from the balcony.  Juri glanced up to see a girl with short brown hair and a tiny face smiling back at her, leaning over the balcony rail.

"Miss Aki Ueda," stated Juri, placing a hand on her hip.  "I'm guessing you're here like the rest of this bunch, getting in practice time?"  Eyeing the girl's hot pink miniskirt and black tank, she raised an eyebrow.  "I wouldn't say you're prepared to spar with me."

Aki chuckled.  "I saw you had plenty on your plate, so I thought about watching."

"Nonsense!" commented Juri.  "You were one of the best females on my team at the academy, and I'm glad you're here.  There's no excuse to not fence when you want.  If I finish here, then you suit up and come down to show some skill."  The girl nodded happily.  Juri turned back to the line.  "All right, next!"

Another young man came on to the floor.  "We all appreciate your tutelage, Captain," he began, "but are you sure you can continue?  You've already fenced thirteen opponents non-stop!"  
  
"Lucky number thirteen, huh?" she quipped.  "There's nothing that could ever make me give up this life, as long as I'm motivated."

A scream erupted behind her, suddenly silenced as fast as it came with the thudding sound of something hitting the floor.  More shouts and screams filled the room as people called Aki's name and began crowding around her.

Concern and fear flooded Juri as she turned around to the site.  Throwing aside her sword and whipping off her mask, orange locks tumbled from their pins and down her back.  Rushing to the fallen girl's side, Juri pushed the stunned on-lookers out of her way.

"Aki!  Wake up!" she called, kneeling next to the girl.  Her teammate showed no visibly broken bones, but she was unmoving.  Holding the sides of the girl's head, she called her name again and again.  "Go call the infirmary," ordered Juri to her last opponent, who stared in shock.  

"Now!"  The command in her tone snapped him out of his daze, and he left to do as she said.

"Is she okay?" the reporter asked, hugging her pad.  

"Does she _look_ okay, Wakaba?" a fencer grumbled. 

"Did anyone see what happened?" she asked, getting negative responses and shaking of heads around her.  The few on the balcony replied the same.  Everyone had been absorbed in watching the duels.  The height from the balcony to the arena floor didn't seem life-threatening but it was a dangerous fall, nonetheless.

"I bet she was pushed," said a girl, immediately catching everyone's attention.

"Aki's perfectly healthy," added another girl. "We all had our physical and she was fine, so she had to be."

The correlation between the two was vague, but no one argued against it.  Everyone began speculating about the means of Aki's fall, all coming to the consensus she was pushed, though no one knew who did it or why.  Talk of jealous fencers who didn't make the preliminary cut and ghosts started, with the word "pushed" peppering every sentence.  This was infuriating Juri.

"Shut up!" Juri yelled, silencing the chatter.  "Stop gawking and stand back.  Gossip somewhere else."

"You heard the captain!" Wakaba shouted, holding her arms out to direct everyone away.  For a reporter, it was a surprise she wasn't acting more assertive than the students.

They obeyed and scattered away, many apologizing to Juri.  No matter how mad she was at them, she was guilty for thinking the same things.

Aki moaned and her eyes fluttered open.  "…pushed…" she muttered.  Thinking she was suffering from a concussion, Juri couldn't be sure if she was repeating words or trying to tell what happened.

"Aki?" Juri called.  The girl's eyes seemed unable to focus on her.  "Aki can you hear me?  Stay awake."

"Captain…"

"Yes, Aki, I'm here," she assured in a soothing tone.

"Why…Captain?" she whispered before falling back unconscious.

The infirmary staff arrived, nudging Juri back to check Aki and place her on a gurney.  Taking another look at the balcony, she hoped to see an obvious clue like a break in the rail, but from her position it appeared fine.  The few loitering above her were not near where Aki had stood and couldn't have run to the other sides fast enough without anyone noticing.  While she wanted to believe Aki had a fainting spell and collapsed over the rail, Juri could not rule out that she was pushed.

_Why…Captain?_  Was she implying this had something to do with her?  The suspect could have overheard the praise she gave Aki from the doorway directly behind the girl, shoved her out of jealousy and escaped the way he or she came.  The only person she could think might want to hurt Juri by hurting one of her prized students was far from the island where Ohtori University was located, by her knowledge.

Seeing the medics wheel the injured girl out of the room, Juri dismissed everyone, canceling all practices until tomorrow.  She wasn't going to let this incident stop her tryouts, but she didn't feel like taking on any more fencers today.  Her mind was too preoccupied with one word.

_Why_?

________________________________

Deny it all she wanted about having no worries; Kozue knew that Guidance Counselor Haniko would continue to hound her about her team until members started to join.  Kozue didn't regret not holding tryouts.  Remembering how in high school there were the giant crowds, the preliminary cut, the secondary cut and then the last minute dropouts because the meets conflicted with the fencing team, Kozue didn't want the hassle now that she was in charge.  It was a waste and slap in the face for swimmers with potential, in her opinion.  However, the assurance from the Chairman that candidates would present themselves hadn't come to pass, even with the word going around the school of her expectations.  With this and Miki being too busy to drive her home, she had a lot to think about on the long walk to the North Dorm.

Taking the skywalk over the main road, Kozue caught site of Juri staring out in the distance.  By the look of her solemn face and folded arms, she wasn't the only one in deep thought.  A small smile appeared on the petite vixen's face.  _Maybe we both need a diversion, she entertainingly thought.  There wasn't anything better for Kozue to do than to say hello._

Climbing up the last steps, Kozue sidled up next to the much taller woman, standing about as tall as Juri's shoulder.  "Don't jump, Miss Arisugawa," she said lightly. 

Without turning her head, Juri flashed one of those callous looks with which she was familiar, sensing the mockery in her tone.  "I wouldn't give you the satisfaction," she laughed.

Her smugness goaded Kozue--it always had--but she was pleased to get a response.  On the list of many people Kozue didn't like was Juri Arisugawa.  She didn't find her as great as others at the university did.  She came across to Kozue as a grating individual, a showoff with her fencing ability.  Plus, she spent too much time with Miki, and because Juri was a part of the Student Council there wasn't anything she could do about it.  Neither one was frightened by the other.  By what her senior knew of the things she may or may not have done at the Academy, such as pushing a teacher down a flight of stairs, the way she intervened in Miki's life and the nasty looks she usually would give her on the few occasions they were together, Juri didn't like her either.

"It looks like you're not having a good day," she continued, admiring the hazy orange evening sky.  "I'm not either.  Thought you might want some company.  Want to talk?"  
  


"I'd rather be alone, thank you," Juri replied, her voice willing her to leave.

"Just showing my concern," Kozue sighed, rolling her eyes.  "After hearing about that nasty accident one of your students had, I thought you might do something drastic."

"Your thoughtfulness is touching," Juri responded flatly, "but my concern for my team member need not worry you.  Instead, you should concern yourself with getting your own." 

"You sound as if you don't want my company," Kozue commented, gazing up at her.  "How come you don't treat me like my brother?"  
  


"Where should I start?" she inquired.  "With his _actual concern for others?  Or his integrity?"_

"You're not being very nice.  Is this the thanks I get for my company?  Maybe that attitude of yours is the reason you're all alone and bad luck has fallen upon you and those around you."

At that moment, Juri shoved Kozue to the stone surface.  "I don't need or want your company," Juri spat, firmly pushing on Kozue's shoulder.  "Why Miki doesn't completely disassociate himself from you is lost on me.  He's nothing like you, and for that I'm glad.  My advice to you is to stay away from me if you don't want some bad luck of your own."

Juri pulled away, taking the stairs down leading across the street.  Rubbing her shoulder, Kozue's disapproval of Juri grew.  Today she wasn't being any fun.  "I hate people," she muttered.

"I hate people, too," said the alluring voice of a grinning woman, who came into Kozue's view standing by her head, the dark shadow she made as dark as her short hair.  "That should make things entertaining."

"Who are you?" Kozue asked.

The woman extended a hand to her.  "My name's Amaya Yanagi.  I'm your new swim mate, if you'll have me."

*              *                 *

Traveling side by side, Amaya was fondly surprised how nicely she was getting along with Kozue.  Explaining how she witnessed Juri's reaction to Kozue's behavior, she felt compelled to speak with her, receiving little resistance from the twin of the council secretary.

"So why do you want to join my team?" Kozue asked with genuine curiosity as they strolled up the path leading to the North Dorm.  "Hearing Miss Arisugawa degrade me hasn't dissuaded you?"

Laughing under her breath, Amaya put her hands in the pocket of her blue jeans.  She was good at reading people, and she could see interest on Kozue's face, while her crossed arms conveyed the message that she was hesitant to trust her.  "Actually, she's made me want to join all the more.  I like your tenacity.  You get under people's skin."

"Why not join the fencing or kendo teams?  Everyone else is," commented Kozue, stopping in front of the main door to the dorm.

"That's exactly why I don't want to," Amaya stated.  "I know my worth.  Achieving a respectable greatness is what I want, and joining those crowded tryouts isn't any good.  However, if I join your team, I'm sure I'll have the liberty to do what I'm good at and help make a name for your team.  I can get under the skin of people, too.  It doesn't hurt that I have a fantastic form in the water.

"Plus, no matter what Miss Arisugawa says about you, I hear good things from the other guys and gals," she added with a grin.

"You don't seem to be one to congregate," Kozue said.  "How would you know anything about me, let alone have an opinion about my character?"

Unable to flat-out tell her about her previous work for the Chairman and being familiar with information on the Student Council's lives, Amaya needed to dodge her inquiry.  "It's no news that you are a threat when it comes to your brother.  You have my assurance that I'll have nothing to do with him.  I'm getting out of a long-term relationship, so to speak.  I live here now too, so you can make sure I don't miss practice."  Opening the door, Amaya gestured for Kozue to enter.  "What do you say, Captain?"  
  


Kozue looked over Amaya, most likely assessing her fitness.  "All right, you're in," she congratulated, stepping inside.  "Of course, I want to see you in the pool tomorrow.  If your fantastic form looks more like a dead fish, consider your acceptance revoked."  
  
"Fair enough," Amaya accepted, "but that won't happen."

  
Kozue invited Amaya to come to her room to discuss the team further.  As they rounded the corner to Room 173, Kozue came to an abrupt stop with Amaya almost slamming into her.  There were boxes littered in front of the open door and sounds of groaning coming from inside.  By the look on Kozue's face, Amaya would say she wasn't happy.

"Roommate huh?  Not lucky enough to get a single?  Too bad."  
  


"Seems the mystery girl has finally arrived.  Hoorah," Kozue said dejectedly.  

As they maneuvered around the cardboard boxes and into the room, Amaya noticed Kozue's face turn to surprise.  A girl with shoulder length burgundy hair and a long sleeve yellow shirt over navy shorts was hanging clothes in the closet.  "Stupid kids.  Stupid people.  Stupid Juri," she growled, too lost in whatever had upset her to notice the entrance of the two swim team members.

"Ahem!" coughed Kozue, getting her attention.

The annoyed look on her face changed to mimic Amaya's captain.  "Kozue?" questioned the girl in a jubilant tone, hanging up the last garment in her hand.   "What are you doing here?"  
  


"This is _my_ room," stated Kozue.

"You're my roommate?" the girl said with disbelief.

"I'm guessing you two know each other," Amaya commented sarcastically.

"Sort of," replied Kozue.  "Amaya Yanagi, meet Shiori Takatsuki."

"Pleased to meet you," Shiori welcomed politely.

"Shiori and I went to high school together," she clarified.  "I didn't know she was attending here."

"It was kind of a last-minute thing on my family's part," Shiori began, her face going back to its annoyed state as she removed some boxes of out their way.  "I only arrived late this morning, and already my time here sucks!  The few that saw me today are muttering that I had something to do with that accident at Juri's fencing club."

"Did you?" asked Kozue with a quizzical eyebrow.

Shiori paused and then smiled.  "Pushing a girl off a balcony?  Sounds more like _your_ style."

"Touché," Amaya muttered, leaning against the doorframe.

Kozue laughed.  "You've more reason to go to Arisugawa's practice than I do."

"Why's that?" Amaya inquired.

"I'm an old friend of Juri's," said Shiori with a giggle.  "She's having a bad day."  
  


"And the two of you will be living together?" Amaya asked, seeing the amusement in Shiori's eyes over her 'friend's' sorrow.  "Ha!  Oh, that's going to stick in Juri's craw."

"Shiori," addressed Kozue, climbing the ladder to the top bunk.  "Can you still swim as well as when we were in gym?"

"Why do you ask?" Shiori inquired.

"I think Captain Kaoru has found another sailor," muttered Amaya.

________________________________

The sun was beginning to set on another day at Ohtori University, bringing with it a welcome respite from the day's exceedingly unpleasant afternoon heat. In the center of the kendo hall, Saionji calmly practiced his moves alone, his face rigid as he concentrated. It was pleasant to do so without the distraction of the other kendo team members or the legions of screaming fan girls that often crowded the hall. Other than Saionji, the hall was empty and silent.

The doors banged open loudly, shattering the serenity of the kendo hall. Saionji continued with his routine, not pausing to turn or look. A gust of wind blew a handful of leaves into the dojo. The bushes rustled outside in the evening breeze. The unwanted visitor cleared his throat loudly after waiting for a minute to be noticed. Saionji sighed and closed his eyes for a long moment, stopping his routine. He wiped the sweat from his brow, adjusted his _gi_ slightly, then turned to face the intruder.

"What do you want?" he asked icily.

"Good evening. My name is Taki Suzuka," the young man opposite Saionji said, leaning cockily against the doorframe. "I hear you're the best on campus," he said, smiling slightly.  "And you see, that's a problem.  Because I know I'm the best."

Saionji sighed again, knowing what was coming next. "What exactly do you propose to do about this, Mr. Suzuka?"

In a quick motion, Taki seized one of the shinai off the wall. "I challenge you, Kyouichi Saionji!"

  
"Right," said Saionji as he adjusted his stance, "Let's get this over with. It's late, and I'm getting hungry."

Another gust of wind blew through the hall, ruffling the hair of the combatants. With a loud battle cry, Taki lunged at Saionji. Hardly seeming to move, Saionji casually twisted his wrist and deflected Taki's attack, sending the dark haired youth tumbling past him. Taki landed on his knees. There was a long moment of silence, then the top half of Taki's shinai abruptly snapped off from the portion he held and clattered to the floor. Taki made no sound, but Saionji expected the bruise he knew would be on the man's wrist to be hurting him about now.

"You're not too bad," Saionji said after a minute had passed. "You need more practice, though."

With that, Saionji strode from the hall. Taki painfully climbed to his feet and stared at Saionji's retreating back.

"Kyouichi Saionji… you will pay for this."

*              *                 *

Just outside the kendo hall, Saionji glared at Touga, who had thrown back his head and was laughing loudly.

"Have you been watching many samurai movies lately, Saionji?" Touga said, when his laughter had calmed.

"Oh, shut up," Saionji grumbled.


	4. Chapter 3: Crossed Swords and Cross Word...

**Chapter 3: Crossed Swords and Cross Words**

_Dear Keiu,_

_The trip was longer than I had expected, but I'm finally here and settled at Ohtori.  You'd have to see this place to believe it.  I was told that the campus was laid out to resemble the old Academy that came before it, but I think the University must be larger by far._

_The weather is nice here, usually fairly mild but it can also get uncomfortably hot from time to time.  I was lucky enough to get a single in the dorms, and I've even managed to make some new friends.  I'm lucky enough to have one of them—Akemi Kawabe, by name—living just a floor above me, so it should be relatively easy to get together and do something.  There seem to be more possibilities for activities here than I would have first thought.  You should talk Soyokaze into letting you come for a few days so you can see the place._

_Time seems to drift here, though.  I arrived only days ago, and yet it seems as if I've been attending classes here for years.  It's somewhat difficult to recall the exact date.  Everybody talks about time in relative terms—two more days until the weekend, or a few days until the fencing team tryouts—and it lends the campus an idyllic atmosphere.  I know you'll be thinking about college for yourself soon enough.  You might want to consider Ohtori._

_At any rate, there isn't much happening for me here until the fencing team holds tryouts and announces their roster.  I hope to do well, but I'm a bit worried.  I've only ever fenced for fun, as you know, never for competition.  Still, I believe I can make the team, though I'll have to put in a bit of practice before the tryout date.  As soon as something new or interesting comes up, I'll write again. _

_                                                                                                                Best regards,_

_                                                                                                                Kouu_

Kouu sighed and leaned back in his chair.  He'd meant to write home sooner, but class assignments had gotten in the way.  Real life had a tendency to do that, he reflected.  But then, Ohtori was still in the middle of the chaos of a new school year.  With all the different teams and clubs frantically recruiting new members, it seemed as if there was never a moment of rest for those interested in joining something.  Even one club could wreak havoc on a person's schedule, and a majority of the students were trying to juggle two or more.  He'd have a personal understanding of that soon enough, since he'd have to start hitting the fencing gym to practice and size up the competition.  

He glanced around the room briefly.  The dorm still felt new to him, less home-like than he was comfortable with.  He was sure that would change in time, though.  He'd been in luck with a single, but that had turned out to be something of a double-edged sword.  He was the only person inhabiting the room, but that also meant he was given less space overall.  Still, it wasn't bad, and decorations of almost any kind were allowed.  The only real restriction was that students could not alter the original state of the dorm in any way.  For most students, that was no more than a minor inconvenience, as it forced many to find means to hang posters other than driving nails in the walls.  

There was little furniture, but what he had was adequate.  His bed, made with his own set of dark blue sheets, was tucked in one corner, while the desk sat situated along the wall, with a bookshelf mounted above it.  There was a chest of drawers in another corner that held several odds and ends and his more casual clothes.  There was also a small walk-in closet set in the wall by the door, where he put his shoes and his more formal clothes.

He stretched, thankful his day was over.  He eyed the stack of books on the corner of his desk, including three classes worth of material to slog through.  Tuesdays and Thursdays were turning out to be his heavy hitters as far as assignments were concerned.  A paper due in English for when class met again the following Tuesday, and an essay due for his Western Literature class that same day.  Thankfully, he had four days to work through it all.  

"And then there's math," he murmured, eyeing his algebra textbook darkly.  That assignment was due tomorrow.  

A knock on his door interrupted Kouu's thoughts.  "Come in," he called.  "It isn't locked."

The door opened a second later to admit Akemi.

"Oh, hey," Kouu said, smiling.  "This is a pleasant surprise."  He raised an eyebrow.  "But don't you have class now?"

"Well, sort of," Akemi said.  "I was late to my last class, and I got locked out."

"You know, you really need to learn the layout of this place," Kouu admonished.  "I know it can get confusing, but you should at least be able to find your classes."

"Everything looks the same!" Akemi complained.  "All the buildings and hallways are the same white marble and columns and everything."

"I understand what you mean," Kouu said.  "And I'm not trying to get on your case.  But your professors aren't going to accept that answer."

"I know," Akemi grumbled.  "I hear it from them.  I don't need to hear it from my friends, too."

"Sorry," Kouu said.

"Oh, it's no big deal," Akemi replied.  "I just…ugh."

"I understand," Kouu said.  "So, what brings you here?"

"I thought I'd stop by to pay you a visit," Akemi said.  "Just see how you're doing, you know?"

"Well, you're welcome to sit down wherever you like," Kouu said, making a sweeping gesture with his arm that encompassed the room.  "I mean, it's a bit cozy, but you can probably find somewhere to sit."

"Thanks," Akemi said, sitting down on the edge of the bed.  She set her book bag at her feet and stretched once, arching her back and spreading her arms.  "It's been a long day."

"Yeah, I know," Kouu said.  "It doesn't help that everyone's rushing around for all the clubs.  Everything feels so hectic.  It's like the campus never relaxes."

"Oh, it will," Akemi said.  "Once the big rush is over and all the teams and clubs are set."

"So, still a couple weeks, then?" Kouu asked.

"Yeah, something like that," Akemi said.  "So, what are you working on?" she asked, noticing the letter Kouu had been writing.  "English paper?"

"This?" Kouu asked, pointing to the paper.  "Oh, no.  I'm writing home."

"Oh?  And where is home?" Akemi asked.

Kouu chuckled a bit.  "Home is wherever Soyokaze's business takes him," he said.  "But Kyoto, mostly."

"Who's Soyokaze?"

"He's…"  Kouu hesitated, searching for the right word.  As he looked around, he glanced at his watch briefly.  He was surprised at how late it was.  He needed to get to the fencing hall fairly soon, though he still had a little time.  "He's my mentor," Kouu said.  "But I'll have to explain later.  I need to get down to the fencing gym and practice."

"That's fine.  Do you mind if I…"  Her voice trailed off as she glanced into one corner of the room.  Leaning against the wall was a sword.  It made her think of a rapier at first, but the hilt was longer, and the blade somewhat wider.  

"What's that?" she asked, pointing at the sword.

"It's a sword, of course," Kouu said.

"No, I mean, why do you have it here?  And is it real?"

"I have it here because Soyokaze gave it to me, and yes, it's very real."  He stood up and walked over to the corner where it rested.  He picked it up and unsheathed it, letting the light from the window reflect on the well-polished blade.  "It's very light.  You can use it just like a rapier."  He demonstrated a few simple fencing maneuvers.  "But the long hilt and sturdier blade means you could also do two-handed maneuvers."

"That's odd," Akemi said.  "That he'd give a sword like that to you, I mean.  You're a fencer, after all.  You'd think he'd give you a normal rapier if anything."

"Well, it belonged to Soyokaze originally," Kouu explained.  "He handed it down when we found out that I got accepted here."

"I see," Akemi said.  Kouu sheathed the blade once more.  "Well, anyway, I was going to ask if you'd mind me coming to the fencing gym to watch you."

"I don't mind at all," Kouu said.  "In fact, maybe I can open your eyes to the virtue of fencing."

"I thought you wanted to drop that argument the other evening," Akemi smiled.  She rose, and Kouu opened the door for her.

"I did," Kouu said.  "But I'd rather win it."

*              *                *

Akemi picked her way through the bleachers in the gym, finally opting for a seat halfway along the bleachers and high enough to get a good view of just about everything happening in the gym.  

She smiled to herself whenever she thought of this area of Ohtori being referred to as the Kingdom.  That name seemed a bit on the pretentious side, as if someone was trying to be overly grand when they coined it.  And yet…  

She watched the captain of the fencing team face off against another opponent and score another easy win.  The gathered crowd, composed of both spectators and fencers waiting their turn for a match, let loose with a thunderous cheer, and then called out the number of matches Juri Arisugawa had won consecutively.

_"Thirteen!"_ they cheered as the next opponent took up his position facing the team captain.  The match was brief, and the struggle very one-sided.  Juri won with ease, and as her opponent made his way back into the crowd to be replaced by another, the gathered onlookers resumed their cheers.

_"Fourteen!"_ they cried as the last opponent stepped up.  Where was Kouu, she wondered idly?  He should be seeing this.  If he wanted to join the team, it would be a good idea to find out what kind of competition he'd be facing.

In as little time as it took for the complete thought to cross her mind, the new challenger was soundly trounced.

_"Fifteen!"_ they cried.  Juri removed her fencing mask and let her golden curls fall.  She undid the topmost button of her collar as she sat down in a chair near where she had been fencing.  It was whispered here and there that Juri would spar occasionally just to see how many opponents she could defeat.  This was apparently an example of the phenomenon.  The highest number of matches she had won in a row was frequently debated, but no one seemed to know for sure.  What _was known, however, was that she had never quit for a loss._

"All right!" the captain barked.  "That's enough for now!  Practice on your form, or find someone at about your skill level if you want to spar.  You know the routine."

The onlookers scattered, while the fencers did as their captain demanded, some breaking off into pairs, while others went to practice thrusts and parries.

It _was a kingdom, Akemi thought, one ruled by the force of Juri's presence.  Sitting on her chair, where the other fencing team members gave her plenty of space, she was a lion on a hilltop, regal, graceful and powerful.  One of the team members gave her a water bottle and handed her a towel.  She wiped her face, and then drank from the bottle.  She paused after a moment to glance around the gym.  Apparently, no one caught her interest._

Miki Kaoru stood off to her side, arms folded, his eyes constantly scanning the gathered fencers.  

It was then that Kouu entered, facemask tucked beneath his left arm and foil in hand.  He waved to Akemi as he entered, and she smiled to encourage him.

He stood out from the others, she noticed.  Part of it was his height, but even then, there was something else.  It was the nonchalant way he carried himself, she realized, the way that nothing going on seemed to matter to him.  He didn't seem to acknowledge the crowd at all.  He wasn't interested in fencing to prove anything or to improve, just to enjoy himself.  For Kouu, it was a game, separated from any other only by the need for sharp reflexes and general physical fitness.

She watched as he found an area of his own on the floor and began practicing thrusts and lunges.  His movements were quick and economical, with a fluid grace she didn't see in many of the other fencers on the floor.  

One of the fencers tapped Kouu on the shoulder.  Akemi couldn't hear what was said, but after a brief exchange, the pair moved to one of the lanes to fence.  She watched the two take up their stances.  There was a moment of hesitation between the two, and then Kouu shot forward, thrusting.  His opponent looked taken aback by the sudden movement and hastily countered.  Kouu lunged forward again and attacked with a quick flurry of blows that dismantled his opponent's defense, leaving him wide open for the winning point.

As his opponent walked away, another hastily stepped up.  Kouu finished the second match just as quickly, and a third stepped up to take the second one's place.  

It was then that Akemi noticed that Miki had stopped scanning the room and started watching only Kouu.  A small crowd was starting to build up around the tall freshman, just a handful of fencers who had been practicing their moves until a moment ago.  

The redhead watched Miki lean close to Juri to whisper something in her ear.  The lioness watched Kouu for a moment, and then nodded.  Miki straightened, grabbed his foil and facemask, and headed in Kouu's direction.

*              *                *

Kouu had polished off his fourth or fifth opponent--he hadn't really been keeping an accurate count--when he saw Miki Kaoru step in front of him.  A hush fell over the room, as Miki looked the newcomer up and down briefly.  

"Mr. Kaoru," Kouu said, bowing.  As he rose, he took off his mask.  "It's a pleasure to see you again."  He almost seemed like a different person now, Kouu thought.  The Miki he had seen playing the piano and apologizing for the brief encounter with Touga bore only a passing resemblance to the Miki who stood before him here on the fencing lane. 

Whispers shot through the audience.  How did this newcomer know Miki, who was bested in fencing only by Juri herself?  Were the two connected in some way?  Perhaps they knew each other from before Ohtori.  

"And you, Kouu…"

"Kouu Koharu," the blonde said, remembering that he hadn't given Miki his full name during their brief encounter in the piano room.  "Freshman."

"I see," Miki said.  "I didn't think you fenced.  You seem to be quite good."

Kouu shrugged.  Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a brown-haired girl with a hairstyle reminiscent of an onion scribbling furiously in a notepad.  She stopped every now and then to ask questions of those around her.  

"I like to think so," Kouu said.

"Well, fencing is a perishable skill," Miki said.  "And I haven't seen you around here even once yet."

"It _is the beginning of a new year," Kouu pointed out._

"True," Miki said.  "But constant practice is necessary to stay in good form.  Constant _challenge, as well."_

"I can appreciate a good challenge," Kouu said.  He smiled as he spoke, but saw no similar look from Miki.

"Well then…"  Miki put on his mask and assumed a stance.  _"En garde!"  _

Kouu hastily donned his own mask and took up a neutral stance.  As he stood now, he could strike or defend easily.  The crowd leaned forward in anticipation.  Miki didn't fence as often as Juri did, and hardly ever against the other fencers.  He mostly took care of individual instruction as necessary, and the majority of the sparring he did was against Juri.  Seeing him single out and challenge a newcomer was something rare to the point that no one could quite remember if he had ever done it before.

The two stood still, sizing each other up.  The crowd waited with bated breath.  

The screech of rubber soles against the polished hardwood floor echoed through the gym as the two fencers darted toward each other.  The clatter of the two combatants' foils made considerably less noise, but carried more impact as the two fencers made contact, neither managing to strike the other.

Kouu took up the offensive first, pressing Miki farther and farther back.  His attacks used up as little motion as possible.  Save motion, save energy, he had been taught.  But he couldn't find a true weakness in Miki's defense.  Juri's lieutenant was giving ground almost willingly, as if he was still sizing up his opponent.  

Then Kouu spotted an opening at Miki's left shoulder, and he lunged in to exploit it.  He realized almost too late that it had been a feint.  Miki's foil came up fast to deflect the blow, and then Miki launched his own assault.  It was a struggle for the blonde to fend off Miki's attacks, and for a moment, he wasn't sure he could keep it up.  The Student Council secretary's last attack was within mere inches of Kouu's facemask when the blonde saw that his opponent's attack left him open.  The secretary's overconfidence denied him victory for the moment.  Before the ball point of Miki's foil reached Kouu's mask, the freshman's own blade was there, knocking the blow aside at the last possible second. 

"Way to go, Kouu!" Akemi cheered from the stands, making Kouu grin beneath his mask as he took up the offensive anew.  "Show them how it's done!"

He pressed forward again.  Once again, Miki was giving ground, but it was done grudgingly this time.  Then he noticed a weakness in Kouu's attack, and beat the invading foil aside just in the nick of time.

The two stood apart for a moment, neither one moving to the attack.  Kouu considered his next course of action.  Even as careful as he was, he was beginning to tire.  It didn't help matters that he couldn't find any good way to finish his opponent.  Miki's defenses were too solid, his attacks too swift, for Kouu to gain any definite advantage.  He might be able to wear his opponent down to a point where a weakness would be revealed, but that would take time and energy the blonde wasn't sure he had.  His best bet, he realized, was an all-out offensive.  It wasn't a great tactic, but it was the only thing he could think of.

As the match had opened, so did it close.  Kouu and Miki rushed toward one another at the same time, each readying an attack.  Kouu knew he was wide open, but he was committed.  He couldn't back out now.

Both foils struck at the same instant.  Kouu's blade struck Miki in the shoulder, while Miki's foil pressed against his facemask.  The two stood like that a moment, as if the match had left them so exhausted they hadn't even the energy to withdraw.  

Miki straightened first, taking off his mask.  "Impressive, Mr. Koharu," he said.  "You really are good.  I'm afraid I underestimated you."

"Underestimated me?" Kouu puzzled, taking off his own mask.  "You still won."

"True," Miki said, "but it was a victory I had to work for."  He paused for a moment, thinking.  "However, a win _is_ still a win," he pointed out.  "And you still could stand to improve, Mister Koharu."

"I know," Kouu said, smiling.  "And I intend to."  He wiped the sweat from his brow before it could drip into his eyes.  Now, Kouu thought, he had a reason to work to better himself.  "Thank you for the match, Mr. Kaoru," he said, and turned to leave the lane.  

Miki watched him go.  Outwardly, he looked calm, but he was troubled.  He hadn't encountered anyone that good in some time.  The only person who gave him that much of a workout was Juri, and she typically won matches between the two of them.  Kouu was almost as good.  Miki tried to calculate how good Kouu would be when he was back in fighting form if, as the blonde had claimed, he was really just out of practice.  

Akemi greeted Kouu as he separated from the dispersing crowd.

"Okay, I take back the comment about fencing not being challenging," Akemi laughed.  "You're dripping like a waterfall, and with all the work I saw you putting in out there, it's obviously not that easy."

"Of course not," Kouu said.  He was still breathing a bit heavily from exertion.  "But thanks for watching.  I really appreciated the encouragement."

"No problem," she said.  "But right now, you need a shower."

"No kidding," Kouu said, heading for the locker room.  "Well, I'll see you later," Kouu said.  Akemi nodded, and they separated.  But before he'd taken more than a couple steps, Kouu stopped and turned.

"Akemi?" he asked, raising his voice to be heard over the din.

"What is it?" she asked, turning to face him.

"How would you feel about having dinner out tonight?"

____________________

Anthy gazed out the window of her dorm room, staring across the campus.  The setting sun colored Ohtori in golden hues.  Beyond the grounds of the university, she could see the ocean, shimmering brilliantly in the sunset.  It was quite a sight, and she would have appreciated it more if she weren't in her current position.

For the first time since arriving, Anthy was feeling fear.  She had thought she felt it before, when Utena had left to go to Ohtori ahead of her, but that was just anxiety borne of anticipation.  And until now, before and after her meeting with Akio, what she had felt was dread in the face of what she potentially faced.  But so far, she had only been thinking in terms of what she would have to go through.

Fear had come for her when she started to wonder, not about what she might have to go through, but _if..._

If.  If they failed in their goal...  If Akio knew what they were planning...  If...  

The fear was in the uncertainty, the insecurity.  The fear was in the powerlessness Anthy felt as the Rose Bride.  The Bride was always a position of submission.  There were precious few choices available to her at this juncture.  It was all in Utena's hands, and, if they were very lucky, the hands of those who might fight beside them.  

The problem was that she could rely on no one aside from Utena.  Anyone who might be able to help her would have to be a Duelist, and the Duelists were under Akio's influence, even when they thought they weren't.  _Especially _when they thought they weren't.  And just as a Duelist might be, they were almost all inevitably twisted into something unjust.  She remembered when Saionji Kyoichi had been a noble young man and Touga Kiryuu had been a veritable knight in shining armor.  It was amazing how a person could change, she thought.  

She knew Akio planned on adding to the Student Council in some way.  She had guessed this shortly after her arrival.  She had later seen letters sitting on Akio's desk, letters to be sent out to new potential Duelists, but these only confirmed her suspicions.  

She knew, as Akio did, that the Duelists from the Academy were stale, in a sense.  They had been a volatile mix once before, personalities clashing in new and surprising ways each time a new duel was to be fought.  But they had all been through the worst of what they could inflict on each other.  Even if they didn't remember directly all that had befallen them at the Academy, somewhere down deep, they knew.  There was a limit to how well they could be played against each other now.  

New Duelists would liven up the mix.  They would revitalize those who came before them and later stand on their own when the original Duelists moved on.  New conflicts would clash with the old in a ritual Akio had been performing since time out of mind.

Anthy felt cold inside at the thought that she would knowingly take part in this ritual once more.  It wasn't just what would happen to her, though dread at that fact was certainly a part of it.  It was knowing that she would be an object of desire, a thing over which the Duelists would not only fight, but also twist, pervert and corrupt themselves just for the _chance _of fighting for.  

She felt cold inside because of the emptiness of it all, the meaninglessness.

But it would not do to dwell on these things.  She could accomplish nothing by worrying.  She decided to tend to the roses.  If nothing else, it would help her regain her calm.

____________________

Usually, it was Akemi who was late, Kouu reflected as he looked at himself in the mirror.  Of course, he had an excuse.  Akemi just had to change her clothes.  Kouu had needed a shower before he even thought of changing.  He held out some small hope that Akemi would, in keeping with her normal habits, get lost on the way from the fencing gym to the East Dorms.  Of course, hoping didn't make it so.  

_Never keep a lady waiting,_ his sister had told him once.  Considering Akemi, that was probably advice to live by.  Still, he found himself running late.  He just hoped it was forgivable.

Finally showered, dressed and made generally presentable, Kouu left his room at a pace just shy of a run.  Being on the second floor meant the elevator was almost completely useless to him, as he could make his way down the stairs almost as fast as the elevator, and it was rarely ever ready and waiting at his floor anyway.  Really, the only use it saw was from students arriving at or departing from campus between semesters with a hefty load of luggage.  

There were a few people in the day room on the ground floor watching television and talking.  The blonde gave them a cursory glance as he went through the room, and then walked out the door.

The sight that greeted him immediately outside the dorm building stopped him cold.  There was Akemi, sure enough...  And then there was Touga, chatting her up and laying on the charm.  Judging by Akemi's light blush, it was obviously having some effect.

Kouu had heard his share of rumors surrounding the Student Council president.  While he was more than willing to give anyone the benefit of the doubt, he also knew that rumors have to start with something.  Casual observation alone lent him plenty of evidence to judge in favor of what he had heard.  But while his first reaction was to storm over to where Touga and Akemi were talking and break them up, he quickly put a rein on his instincts and walked over casually.

"Akemi," he said as he approached, "sorry I'm late."

"Oh, it's no problem," the redhead replied.

"I saw Miss Kawabe waiting all alone here and decided to keep her company while she waited," Touga said, smiling.  "You must be Mr. Koharu."  

"Yes," Kouu said.  "And you're Touga Kiryuu, right?  The Student Council president?"  Kouu got the feeling that Touga was measuring him, determining whether or not the blonde would be any impediment to Touga's advances on Akemi.

"Yes," Touga said.  "I see you paid attention during orientation."

"Well, I think just about everyone has heard about you, Mr. Kiryuu," Kouu said, returning the president's smile in a somewhat forced show of nonchalance.  He'd made it to the island a day or so too late to catch the orientation, but it was difficult not to know who Touga was, with the way rumors spread.

"Quite possibly," Touga said.  "But it's hard to avoid notice in the Student Council.  That was true even at the Academy.  And by the way, call me Touga.  I'm not overly fond of formalities."

"Then call me Kouu," the blonde replied, edging closer to Akemi.

"Certainly.  Well, I won't keep you from your engagement any longer," Touga said, giving Akemi a winning smile.  "Enjoy your evening."  So saying, he went on his way, leaving Kouu and Akemi to continue their evening.

There was silence between the two in the wake of the Student Council president's departure.  Kouu was the first to speak.

"So, what was that all about?" Kouu wanted to know.

"What was _what all about?" Akemi responded._

Kouu nodded in the direction Touga had gone.  "Him."

"We were just talking, Kouu," Akemi said.  "Relax."

Kouu sighed.  "I'm not one to believe rumors, but, well…  Every rumor has to start somewhere.  From what I've heard, he doesn't just talk when it comes to women."

"What, you think he's trying to seduce me?"  Akemi's eyes widened in disbelief at the blonde's suggestion.

Kouu shrugged.  It wasn't a matter of thinking; he was thoroughly convinced.  "I don't know," he said.  She was already upset, and he thought it best not to make things worse.  "All I can say is that I've seen him around, and he stops and flirts with just about every single girl he sees."

"Kouu, he's a good-looking guy."  She tried to keep her voice calm.  "Girls are naturally going to give him second glances when he walks by."

"This isn't 'second glances' I'm talking about," Kouu argued.  "He walks around and flirts or hits on every girl he comes across, or close to it.  They might think he's just being friendly, or he's interested, but he's leading them on."

"Has it ever occurred to you that maybe he just doesn't want to hurt anyone's feelings by flat-out rejecting them?" Akemi snapped.

"Do you have any idea how naïve that sounded?" Kouu retorted, and then instantly wished he could take the words back.  So much for not making her angrier, he thought.

"I can't _believe you!" Akemi nearly yelled.  "Listen to yourself, Kouu.  You can't go around judging people just by what you hear.  Besides," she sighed, "even _if_ you were right, it's not like I can't tell when someone's trying to take advantage of me.  Give me some credit, Kouu.  I have more self-control than that."_

"I know, it's just..."  Kouu shrugged.  He wanted to believe Akemi had as much self-control as she said, but her reaction to Touga seemed to be quite strong and definitely in the Student Council president's favor.  "I don't know.  Can we just drop this?"

"Now you're dodging out of the argument," she accused.

"Yes, I am," Kouu said, and sighed.  "Look, this isn't what I had in mind.  I'm sorry I brought it up.  I'm not usually like this, I just…  I'm sorry.  I was an idiot for bringing the subject up and thinking that way.  Now can we just go out and have a good time?"  

"If you insist," Akemi said, rolling her eyes.  It was an exaggerated expression, though, and she laughed as she did it.  Kouu breathed a sigh of relief, glad the brief altercation was finished.  However, his opinion of Touga didn't change.  As much as Akemi might dislike it, Kouu wasn't about to let her be used by Touga.  It would be different if he could believe Touga's intentions were pure, Kouu reasoned with himself.  But under the circumstances, that seemed less than likely.

"So, did you have any place in mind?" Akemi inquired.

Kouu shrugged.  "I don't really know.  I haven't been out much since I got here, so I don't know where there's any place that's really nice.  I was hoping you'd have something in mind."

"Well, I do know of a place we can go to," Akemi said.  "It's probably not very busy, but it'll be a bit of a walk to get there."

"Lead the way," Kouu said.  

The road they walked led out toward the edge of the island.  The island the university occupied was small, Kouu knew, but he hadn't much of an idea how small until just now.  In the brief time he and Akemi had been walking, they had nearly reached the coast.  Of course, it was also likely that the campus was simply situated near the coast.  The island was home to a port for fishermen, another port for the campus, and an entire village of people.  It couldn't be _that_ small.

The island had been home to a fishing village, originally, and some of that trade still remained.  More recently, it had been a sort of tourist place, advertised as a quiet, secluded island where people could get away and just relax.  The vacation economy had kept the island afloat until the Ohtori Board of Trustees had decided to build the university there.  Now, Kouu thought, it looked like the island would become a college community.  It had caused a minor uproar among those more wealthy vacationers who had purchased estates on the island.  Soyokaze, the man responsible for most of Kouu's upbringing, had a friend who mentioned on more than one occasion that he was less than pleased with the construction of the university.  

As the couple neared the coast, the road forked.  To the right, the road led down to a beach, while the left fork led up a short cliff.  

"So, which way?" Kouu asked.

"Left here," Akemi said, looking back at the beach as they headed up the cliff road.  "It might be nice to hit the beach once before the semester gets in full swing, too."

Kouu nodded.  "Yeah, we should get a group together some weekend soon.  We'll have to talk Taki and Ran into coming down here."

"Definitely," Akemi said.  "One last hurrah before we all have to get serious."

After a few minutes of walking, Kouu spoke up again.

"So, where _is this restaurant of yours?" the blonde asked._

"What's the matter?" Akemi teased.  "Afraid of a little walk?"

"A little walk?  No," Kouu laughed.  "But this is more like a nature hike."

"Well, I chose the scenic route," Akemi said.  "I like looking out over the sea."  

"The ocean's always made me nervous," Kouu said.

"Really?"  Akemi was a bit surprised by the revelation.  Kouu seemed like the levelheaded and practical type.  "Why?"

"I don't know, really," Kouu said.  "I guess it just unnerves me to look out over all the waves and see nothing but more waves.  Looking out at the ocean like that, I think I can understand why ancient explorers thought that after the ocean there was nothing but the edge of the world.  It seems like that's all there is, even when you know that somewhere out there, after miles and miles, there's land." 

"Maybe we shouldn't go to the beach, after all," Akemi suggested.

"No, don't let that stop you," Kouu said.  "I'd still be perfectly willing to go just to hang out with you and everyone else."

"Well, we'll see," Akemi said.  "Anyway, we're just about there."

Kouu hadn't been paying much attention to where they were going as they talked, and so he looked up for the first time and saw the restaurant.  It was a fairly small white building that overlooked the ocean.  It didn't look as if there were a great many people inside, but it was a bit out of the way, Kouu reasoned.  Still, it looked like a nice enough place from the outside.  

As they entered, he was just thankful that he had enough money to cover the meal.

*              *                *

"So, what brings you to Ohtori, Kouu?" Akemi asked between bites of tempura.

"Nothing in particular," Kouu said.  "Partly just because I needed to go to college, of course, and partly because Soyokaze recommended it."

"Who's Soyokaze?" Akemi asked.  "You mentioned him earlier.

Kouu swallowed a bite of curry before answering.  "Soyokaze is my mentor.  That's as close as I can come to describing him, I guess.  I've never really tried to find a word to describe his relation to me.  He's always just been Soyokaze to me."  He took another bite, and after swallowing it, continued.  "He took me and my sister in when our parents passed away.  I was about ten then."

"I'm sorry to hear that," Akemi said.  "I hope it doesn't sound like I'm prying."

"Oh, don't worry about it," Kouu said.  "Anyway, he was an Ohtori student, as it turns out.  So was my father, in fact.  They went to Ohtori together when it was an academy, and they were both on the Student Council.  I was never told the whole story, but I'm pretty sure that's how they first met.  Soyokaze's the one who gave me that sword you saw sitting in my room earlier.  He had it when he was at Ohtori, and he said it would be fitting for me to take it back again.  Now he owns a company that makes business software.  He's also one of the alumni that the promotions board always points out as being the kind of success story you can achieve if you attend Ohtori."  Kouu grinned.  "He was really amused by that, I think.  Anyway, he recommended that I go to Ohtori, and I passed the entrance exams, so here I am."  He took a drink.  "What about you?"

"What about me?" Akemi asked.

"Why are you at Ohtori?"

"Oh, well…  Part of it is just that I wanted to get out of the house when I went to college.  My mother's the traditional sort.  She actually wanted me to become a housewife, if you can believe that."

Kouu's laughter interrupted her.  "What's so funny?" she demanded.

"I just can't see you as the stay-at-home type," Kouu said.  "Cooking and cleaning and tending the home.  It seems too tame for you."

"For your information, I happen to be a very good cook," Akemi said.  "As you should know, after dinner the other night."

"I don't doubt you," Kouu said, his tone turning serious.  "But I see you as being someone who needs a fairly constant challenge in life." 

Akemi nodded.  "That's why I started taking kendo, originally.  Mom hated the fact that I was in kendo.  That was one of the only things Dad ever stood up to her on, I think.  She would have preferred me to continue with my piano lessons because playing the piano was more 'ladylike', but I hated her showing me off in performances, so I quit once I was old enough.  I used to go to a university in Sendai, where I live.  But the program there wasn't what I wanted, so I transferred here.  The day before I left for Ohtori, Mom told me that what I really needed was 'a proper man to settle me down.'"  She shook her head, as if still unable to believe it.  "I think she was ready to take me to a matchmaker and be done with it once and for all.  But I had the grades to get in, and with my kendo scholarship, she couldn't really make any excuses about cost, since it's a free ride as long as I keep my grades up."

"Well, if you ever need any help with studying," Kouu said, "Let me know.  I might be able to help you."

"Thanks for the offer," Akemi said.  "I can usually keep a pretty good handle on things, though."

"That's fine," Kouu said.  "Just remember.  If you need anything, let me know."

The rest of the dinner passed in small talk.  Kouu found himself fascinated by his dinner companion.  She was physically attractive, but if that had been all, Kouu would have lost interest over time.  There was something about her that compelled him, something he could not name.  It was in her smile when she laughed, it was in her frown when she was deep in thought.  It was in the tone of her voice and the way she spoke, it was in the way she moved, aggressive and energetic without being obnoxious.  He could stare into her hazel eyes all day, but he tried to avoid that as much as he could.  He was naïve in some ways, but even he knew already that he was very capable of falling for this girl, and falling far.  And while he wanted to fall for her more than anything, he was apprehensive at the same time.  Falling for someone meant losing a measure of control.  

*              *                *

Dinner had been pleasant, and had gone better than he had thought to hope.  He had kept Akemi talking for most of the walk back just to hear the sound of her voice.  It was soothing, like the sound of the waves on the shore.  Even without that, though, he liked the way she spoke, careless and free, talking about anything that came to mind, not worrying about what other people might think.  She was a free person, Kouu realized, and she needed to stay free.

These thoughts all went through his head as he neared the East Dorms.  Akemi had parted earlier, saying she had agreed to spend some of the evening with Ran, so Kouu decided to walk for a while to clear his head and order his thoughts.  

As he walked around the dorm, he saw that some small distance from the easternmost wall of the building, there was a curving line of hedges that stood taller than Kouu was by a good margin.  In the fading light, he could make out a gap between the hedges, which led to a hedge-lined passage.  He entered out of curiosity, and realized then what he had come across.

A hedge maze.

He had heard of mazes like this and seen pictures of them, but he had never seen one up close, and certainly never had the chance to explore one.  He wondered idly if he would get lost.  He supposed it was possible, but in his current good mood, there was little that could bother him.  He fairly floated along the path, paved with white stones, as he made his way through.  

The maze wasn't terribly complicated, but it was large.  Kouu had always had a good sense of direction and a knack for solving mazes on paper.  Those two talents served him well here.  He only met with a few dead ends before finding his way to the center.  He could tell he was closing on the heart of the labyrinth when the curve of the passages became shorter.  As he neared the center, he thought he could hear the sound of running water and, through that, someone's voice, though he couldn't recognize whoever it was or make out what they were saying.  As he drew closer, it became apparent that the person in the labyrinth was humming to himself.

Another turn brought Kouu to the center of the labyrinth.  Like the path he had been treading, it was paved in white flagstones, and in the very center was a fountain.  The edges of its basin were carved in a vine pattern that repeated itself endlessly all along the edge.  It sprayed water up and out in a rippling dome shape that was pleasing to watch.  Around the fountain on all sides were arrayed benches of the same white stone.  They were simple in construction, but elegant.

Lying spread out along one of the benches was a young man with slightly unruly blue hair.  His eyes were closed as he hummed to himself, a song or melody Kouu had never heard before.  A cane leaned against the edge of the bench the man lay across, within easy reach of his right hand.  At first, he seemed totally oblivious to Kouu's entrance, but then he spoke.

"You know, in medieval Europe, the Church made use of labyrinths like this.  Their labyrinths were just designs in the stone, though, and they were smaller.  They were made for pilgrims who couldn't manage the journey to the holy land.  So instead of going to Jerusalem, they would walk along the labyrinth and pray and think.  It was a meditative exercise of faith." 

"And so what are you meditating on?" Kouu asked, smiling faintly.

"Nothing," said the blue-haired young man, who appeared to be roughly Kouu's age.  He rose slowly from his relaxed position.  "I'm no pilgrim, and I'm not on a journey.  And on these legs, it's damn hard to meditate on anything and walk at the same time."  He stood.  He wobbled for a bit, as if to demonstrate his impairment, then steadied himself with his cane.  "What are _you meditating on?" he asked._

"Nothing much," Kouu said.  "I'm in too good a mood to think any deep thoughts."  Then, remembering his manners, he realized he had yet to introduce himself.  "By the way, my name is Kouu Koharu."

"Mikado Tsuchiya," the blue-haired young man said.  "I've returned here after an extended illness.  Well, not _here_, really.  I attended the academy before.  They built the university while I was still in the hospital.  But both places are alike enough that it doesn't really matter.  And you?"

"This is my first time here," Kouu said.

"You wouldn't happen to live in the East Dorms by any chance, would you?"

"Actually, I do," Kouu said.

"Oh, good.  I know you just arrived, but would you be so kind as to walk with me back to my dorm room, then?  I don't feel too steady at the moment, and I'd hate to take a spill out here in the middle of the maze."

"No problem," Kouu said.  Mikado fell into place beside him as the two made their way back through the labyrinth.  Kouu matched his steps to Mikado's slower, faltering pace.  

"Tell me something—and this is going to sound like an odd question, I guess—but have you noticed anything unusual on campus?" Mikado asked.

"Unusual?"  Kouu said.  "No, not really.  I've heard that rumors spread fast here, but other than that, nothing.  It seems like a nice enough place so far."

"I'm sure it does," Mikado said.  "Give it time, though."

"I beg your pardon?"

"Oh, don't mind me," Mikado said.  "Just thinking out loud."


End file.
